The Right Move
by lforlinstead
Summary: AU. It's her job to find people somewhere to live, and that's just what he needs. But her number one rule is to always keep work life separate from her personal life. So nothing can ever happen between them, can it?
1. Chapter 1

Erin Lindsay loved her job. _Jones and Johnson Real Estate._ Plus, she was good at it. It was good that they worked on commission: she was pretty good at selling people the right property.

Somewhere for their future, somewhere to build a home. Somewhere they could find happiness.

It was just a pity that she'd seemed to sacrifice her own in the process.

Right now, she was running. It was how she began all of her working days: up with a 6:30 alarm then a 30 minute sprint through the park. Today's playlist was Maroon 5 and her breathing pattern quickened as Adam Levine blared from her headphones.

Erin slowed her pace as she neared home. By the time she'd reached the block, the sun was coming up; it already put her in a good mood.

Her job meant she had an advantage when it came to buying properties, or in this case, just renting. She'd stumbled across the beautiful penthouse apartment within minutes of it being listed. It had just been her luck that she'd almost missed it.

The previous owner had bumped up the asking price weeks before the paperwork went through. The only way she'd be able to afford the rent upkeep would be if she had a roommate.

Which is where Katie came in. It worked for Erin- they got on like sisters but even if they didn't wanna see each other, the apartment was big enough for them not to.

"Kate?" Erin shut the door behind her, pulling off her sneakers by the heel.

"She's sleeping," a voice grunted from their kitchen-diner. Erin smiled, knowing that would be true. She walked along to where the voice was coming from.

Katie's boyfriend Dan was leaning against the counter, half-naked and holding a cup of coffee.

Erin pulled a face. "For the love of God, please put on some clothes!"

Dan plastered on a grin. "Morning. I could say the same to you," he gestured towards her.

She looked down at herself. It was no secret that she liked to work out in minimal clothing. It made it easier to run, right?

"Dick," she thumped his arm and reached into the refrigerator, pulling out a water. "It's _my_ house anyway," she stuck out her tongue. "Don't you have work today?"

Dan played on her gesture, rubbing his bicep in faked pain. He shook his head. "Nope. I'm waiting on Kate then I think we're headed for a drive. You third-wheeling?" he teased.

"Dick," she repeated, pausing by the door. "Unlike some, I gotta go to work. Laters," she waved and headed for the bathroom.

So Katie and Dan had a day off, it was no surprise to her. Dan was a free-lance editor but he worked from home a lot of the time. His home, that was. Though he was at their place regularly. Erin didn't care: he was harmless really and he made Katie happy.

Katie was between jobs. Although her rent was _always_ paid on time, much to Erin's satisfaction.

She'd left her retail job after ten years working to get to manager. Her reasoning was simple: _"I fucking hated it there, Erin. I don't get paid enough to be talked at like I'm a sack of shit."_

Now she was in the mind-set she was gonna start her own business. In what though, Erin had no idea. Katie had been 'researching' that for the past couple of weeks.

Erin also guessed Katie was into her savings, paying her rent. She had an advantage over Erin in her upbringing: she had super rich parents. Which meant it was kinda okay for Katie to be essentially unemployed right now.

Erin couldn't do that. She had worked hard to get to where she was. And she was allowed to be proud of herself.

She stripped herself bare, letting the hot water of the shower relax her muscles. She rubbed the shampoo lather into her hair, massaging her temples.

"Erin?" Katie's sleepy tone interrupted her wash. "Hey, I gotta pee. Can I come in?" Before Erin had chance to answer, Katie had stumbled through the door and sat on the toilet.

Erin laughed behind the frosted glass. It didn't matter that Katie had her own en-suite bathroom to pee in. She knew Katie came in for a gossip in the morning, especially if she sensed a busy workload for her roommate.

"Good morning sunshine," Erin chirped, at first receiving an unimpressed noise in response. Erin was a morning person, Katie definitely was _not_.

"What's your day like?" Katie replied, flushing. "How was your run?"

"Pretty good," Erin shut off the water. "Hand me that towel, would you?"

Katie did as she asked, reaching an arm around the glass with the fuzzy towel. "I don't know how you do it," she laughed. "Dan's taking me for a drive."

"Yeah he mentioned that," she ringed out the water from her hair. "Where are you going?" She walked out of the shower cube to find her roomie checking her face in the mirror.

"I wanna check out the market, it might give me some inspo," Katie replied.

"Nice," Erin tried her best to sound enthusiastic, opening the door and heading to her bedroom.

"I wish you could come!" Katie suddenly came to life. "Sometimes I feel like I never see you," she pouted.

Erin giggled. "That's cute," she turned back and wrapped an arm around her friend. "But we're going out Friday, right? Girls' night?"

Katie squealed. "Oh! Yes! I almost forgot!" She kissed Erin's cheek. "Go get your ass ready for work, you don't wanna be _laaate_ ," she ran down the hallway.

Erin liked how they rubbed off on each other. Katie ran back towards her own bedroom with a spring in her step. She had time to turn Katie into a morning person yet…

Hair dried and pants suit on, Erin checked she had everything in her work purse. She finally looked at herself in the closet mirror- her daily _let's do this_ attitude face staring back at her.

Erin picked up her purse, her personal and work cell phones and her car fob from the vanity. It would be at least another 8 hours until she was back here again, Mondays were always the busiest.

The real estate was usually closed at weekends, meaning there'd be new properties, clients and paperwork waiting for her.

"I'm out!" she called from the hallway, her voice travelling the length of the apartment.

Something that resembled a goodbye came from Kate's bedroom, followed by laughter. She left them to whatever they were doing.

Her drive to the office took the usual 20 minutes. On a good day, there was no traffic, she timed her journey well. Working in the city paid off, if you knew the way to go.

She parked right where her permit allowed and grabbed her stuff from the trunk.

The J&J office took up an entire two blocks. It wasn't hard to see the business was successful. They always took on the best properties: high-end apartments and luxury houses. Employees were expected to keep up-to-date with the latest signings: who put the place on the market, what is was worth, the benefits of living there.

Erin walked through the glass double-door into the lobby. When she'd first started, she had to admit it felt super high-end for a real estate building. She'd thought she had the wrong place.

Then Mitch had come into her view. Mitch Johnson, her boss and head of the company, having taken over the business from his father. He'd greeted Erin with a French kiss- though he had as much French in him as Cheetos. That was almost five years ago and Mitch was still-

"Erin," the 'n' of her name still lingered too long on his lips. Mitch shuffled towards her, one of his arms pulling her into an unprofessional hug. She squirmed. "What was your weekend like? How come I didn't see you Friday night?"

Erin groaned internally. He was referring to her invitation to a dinner party at his home. A celebration of how well the company had performed the past month.

But Erin was sure his 'celebration' invitation hadn't stretched to anybody else. It was _her_ Mitch wanted. And that was never gonna happen. Because in _her_ rule book, you didn't mix work life with personal life. That's the way it was.

"I had a better offer," Erin lied, wriggling free from his grip and pulling her jacket further across her shoulders. She smiled: Mitch wasn't toxic really: he knew she was never gonna go there, no matter how much he tried.

"Damn," Mitch curled a fist, turning to accompany Erin to her office. "So, what's new with you?"

Erin shrugged. "That's a question I should be asking you. What have you got for me, Mitch?" They'd reached her office- she'd worked her way up to the one with the best view- and Erin dropped her purse on the floor behind her desk.

She waited for Mitch to reply immediately, but he didn't say anything, leaning against the door frame and watching as Erin headed towards the window to open the blinds. She did the same ritual every Monday morning- open the blinds, grab an iced coffee and stare into the city. They almost always had an employee meeting at 9:30, she could get down to work after that.

"I've emailed you the list of new clients," Mitch folded his arms across his three-piece-suit. One that probably cost him 500 bucks. His grin widened. "I've given you the ones that are looking for something specific. You know, those difficult ones that have certain requirements," he emphasized the last word.

"Flattered. Thanks," Erin replied sarcastically, standing behind her desk and taking off her suit jacket. She walked to hang it on the hook against the wall.

The size of her office meant she got the warmth from the sun for most of the day.

"Hey, if it's too much of a workload-"

Erin glared at him. Mitch was playing devil's advocate: he knew she wouldn't wanna give up the good clients. The ones that guaranteed her a bonus. "I'll be fine."

"I knew you would be," Mitch winked. "No meeting this morning. Check your emails." He blew her a kiss and walked away, leaving her door ajar.

Erin watched after him, frowned. No Monday meeting? Boy, she was bound to be busy. She walked out of the office to grab her coffee while her computer loaded up. Her favorite work colleagues were in the break room.

"Lindsay!" Joe loved to refer to his work friends by surname. It reminded Erin of school, though that was a time she didn't care to speak about.

"Hey Erin," Nancy chirped, turning from the tea she was stirring.

Erin noticed the strange color of it. "Ah. Still on that health kick then, Nance?"

"You got it," her eyes rolled towards Joe. They'd bet on the idea that Nancy couldn't do a detox for a month. She was on week 3, and determined to prove Joe wrong. Still, Erin could tell from the unimpressed look on her face that she wasn't into it.

"How was your weekend?" Joe asked, ignoring the eye-rolling from his best friend. "I heard Mitch invited you over again?" his eyebrows wiggled.

"Yup," Erin nodded, turning to make her own coffee. She added a splash of caramel into the bottom. "I don't think he's ever gonna drop it."

"Want me to take him off your back?" Joe offered.

"You could," Erin laughed. "Although I'm not sure he's into guys, Joe."

"Hey, a guy can dream!" Joe nudged her. He closed his eyes. "Actually, I think I already have…"

" _Gross_. Keep those thoughts to yourself!" Nancy cringed. "Hey Erin, you checked the emails yet? I think this week is gonna be pretty full on."

Erin gulped her coffee. "You do?" obviously she hadn't yet checked her own mail. "What makes you say that?"

Nancy's eyes widened. "I have three possible new clients," she revealed. "Joe has two. You're golden girl so I'm guessing you have more."

Erin's mouth dropped. On a good day, _she'd_ have a maximum of three new buyers and sellers. This was gonna be a different story.

"Shit!" she managed. ""Did we go global overnight or something?"

"It's peak season Linds," Joe reminded her, and the three of them started back to their own individual work-places. "Summer's coming up. We'll have the families wanting something bigger. The ones that work away will be returning, desperate for an apartment."

"You're right," Erin spoke partly to herself, watching the other two hurry back to their desks. She wandered the last bit of the hallway and sunk into her swivel chair.

Her heel had clicked the door shut behind her. When she worked, she liked privacy.

Erin got out her work cell, put her personal one on Do-Not-Disturb and slurped at her coffee. Her right index finger clicked the cursor and brought her computer screen to life.

"Holy crap, you weren't kidding, huh?" she said into an empty office. Mitch and the guys weren't joking, Erin had a ton of new emails.

At second glance, she saw 12 potential prospects: 6 new clients and 6 new properties. She had all day- hell, all _week_ \- to get through and work on them.

Her focus shifted to the remaining emails, several addressed to her personally. The ones that hadn't been forwarded to her from Mitch.

She scrolled through them. Most of which were polite thank-you emails from individuals or families she'd found a home for. The one from Mrs Mullers stood out:

 _Dearest Erin  
I can't say how much it means to me that you found me this place I now call home. It's so much more than I thought I could find. It's perfect. Oh listen to me, blabbing on when you have a job to do. I just have to ask: how do you do it? You found me a house that speaks to me. Thanks so much, Vivienne_

Erin smiled broadly at the screen. It was the only way she could take a compliment: when it was in regards to her work.

Mrs Mullers- Or Vivienne, as she'd insisted Erin call her. A 60-something widow, still living in her marital home. She had no family of her own, only a distant great niece who'd migrated to Spain. Erin had her work cut out with Vivienne, she was a woman with specific requirements as well as things she definitely didn't want.

Erin allowed herself to reminisce for a minute until she figured she had to get down to the real work. Six clients and six new properties, at least she had a variety of each. She had a sly smirk to herself: maybe this would be easier than it looked.

Dependent on her clients' requirements, there was bound to be some overlap. _One of them would surely take an interest in another's property, right?_

She made her way through the client list first:

Mr Charles Ellis, recently retired and looking to downsize.  
The Walker family, wanting a four-bedroom that was pet friendly.  
Newly engaged Grace and Tyler investing in their first home together.  
Ms Sara Brown and her son, requesting a bungalow.  
Jenny and Joanna, only requiring two bedrooms.  
The Kelling-Newton's needing a bigger place for their newly-joined families.

Erin exhaled, looking down the list. They were all _so_ different, perhaps her plan of overlapping wouldn't work.

Mitch filtered the emails so Erin received them in a specific order. That way, she knew who had filed an application first. Meaning, that Mr Charles Ellis was first on her list.

His phone rang twice before he picked up.

"Hullo?" his voice was deep.

"Mr Ellis," Erin turned on her chirpy professional voice as she spoke down the line. "This is Erin Lindsay, I'm calling from Jones and Johnson realtors. I heard-"

"Oh!" His surprise sounded genuine. "I wasn't expecting to hear back from you so soon!"

"We try our best to return calls as soon as possible Sir," Erin continued. Most of the time, she couldn't stand being interrupted but she thought the older man's enthusiasm was cute. Maybe he didn't even get to speak to people often. "Can I ask if you're looking for anything in particular?"

"Not really," he said, then paused to clear his throat. "A one bedroom place, that's enough for lil old me."

"Well okay then," Erin replied. "Give me an hour to see what I have and I'll call you right back. Are you looking to sell your current property too?" she crossed her fingers.

"Of course!" Mr Ellis exclaimed from the other end. "There's a reason I went with your company, I only want the best."

 _He's come to the right place then_ she thought.

"I'm in a three bedroom semi just up from the pier," he continued. "There's space enough for two cars and there's an acre of garden out back."

"Perfect," Erin nodded, already looking down her list of clients. _That would be great for Grace and Tyler, perhaps?_ "Is it okay if I head round this afternoon to take some photos?" she added, typing Charles's address on file.

"Yes Ms Lindsay, that would do just fine," came his response. "I'll see you later."

Erin ended the call. She stretched quickly in the chair, pushing her arms into the air and cracking her wrists. She moved onto the list of new properties.

There were two condos, a bungalow, two beach-houses (the families from her list popped into Erin's mind) and a terraced house in the suburbs.

She thought the only one suitable for Mr Ellis would be the bungalow, but then there were other clients who had specifically requested one of those.

Erin clicked her fingers: she did it unconsciously when she was thinking hard. It was then it came to her: she still had other properties, ones that were still up for sale from the previous week.

"Yes!" she thumped her desk in excitement. Erin brought up her full list of properties she had going. There was something in her previous inbox she thought would be _perfect_ for him.

By the afternoon, Erin had been and taken photographs of Mr Ellis's current place and uploaded them onto the realtor webpage. And she'd taken a leaflet with her, including pics of the home she thought he'd be interested in.

She'd made it back to the office, sat scrolling through her new clients.

She was also on her third cup of coffee- she couldn't live without the stuff.

Her personal cell flickered into life. It was a text from Katie. _Hey roomie, we r picking up Chinese food on way home. What r u having?_

Erin laughed to herself. Kate's text talk made her sound like a teenager.

She groaned, knowing she should leave take-out until the weekend.

Yet her rumbling stomach told her different. And Erin also knew that by the time she made it home, she wouldn't have the patience to cook. Mondays always were her busiest day of the week.

Erin quickly text back her roommate with her usual order- chicken with black bean noodles- and hid her phone in the top drawer of the desk. Like her motto: separate personal life, separate work life. She worked in peace until she was interrupted again.

"Hey Linds," Joe stood on her office doorway. He had the worst habit of not knocking. "You're coming to the quiz tonight, right?"

She pulled a face. it had completely slipped her mind that her workmates were meeting in a bar around the corner tonight.

"Shit," she pretended to have a genuine reaction on her face. "I completely forgot…"

"Don't you dare!" Joe stamped a foot in response. "Don't be boring!"

"Sorry Mr I've-only-got-two-new-clients," Erin teased. "I still have-" she checked the time on her computer screen. "Oh my God, is that the time?" she'd worked right through to 5:30 already. "I think I'll have to take a rain check."

"You suck Lindsay."

For a minute, she thought Joe would put up a fight. Her work family weren't the type to pass on an after-work drink. Erin was the same, she just preferring to do it at home in her pj's.

"You owe me!" And then he was gone.

Erin laughed. He was probably right: when was the last time she'd gone out socially with the guys from work? It was irritating that she couldn't remember.

She made a mental note to make it up to them. She could have gone tonight but since Kate had mentioned her favorite take-out, it was almost all she could think about.

It was home time. If she overworked herself, Erin would be in the worst mood for the rest of the night. She collected whatever she'd taken from her purse and grabbed her suit jacket. Locking her office door behind her, Erin made a bee-line for the main exit. If she was lucky, she could escape the daily goodbye conversation from Mitch as well as the traffic.

 _Bingo_. She half-jogged the rest of the way to her Jeep.

Kate and Dan were already waiting for her. She was resigned to the fact he was probably staying the night again. Which was pretty unusual for a Monday.

Erin smirked. _So when could she start charging him rent?_

"We're in here!" Katie shouted from the lounge, before Erin had even locked the door. "Your dinner is in the kitchen!"

Erin followed the hallway until it led her into the kitchen. It was one of her favorite rooms in the apartment, one of the main things that had attracted her to this place from the offset.

The building itself was old but with modern interior and color.

Erin prided herself at holding dinner and house parties, and she'd be lying to herself if she said she didn't do it to show off their home. The ceilings were high, the flooring unique and the furniture was state of the art.

Being a successful realtor had its perks.

Erin emptied her dinner from the carton and made her way into the lounge. She was too hungry to even change into sweats, which was usually the first thing she did.

"Hey," Erin threw herself into the free couch, her roommate and Dan were entwined on the other. She tucked her legs beneath her and cradled the dish holding her Chinese food. "How was the market?"

"A-MAZ-ing," Kate said it like three separate words. "I got so much inspo!"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah! I'm gonna look into jewelry making!"

Erin continued the conversation between mouthfuls. "That's awesome," she said, with genuine enthusiasm. She was happy Katie was finding something she really wanted to do.

"Isn't it great?" Dan cut in, kissing Katie's cheek. "She's gonna be so good at it," he spoke as his girlfriend caressed his stubble.

Erin rolled her eyes, finishing her food.

"How was your shift?" Katie asked. "Any hot new clients?"

"I wish," Erin joked. She thought to herself. _Was she joking though_? How long had it been since she'd had eye-candy as a client? Her one rule was not to date _anybody_ associated with her job, but there was no harm in looking.

It didn't help sometimes, living with Katie and Dan. They reminded Erin how painfully single she was. Most of the time it didn't bother her- Erin threw herself into her job.

But looking over at Katie and Dan, cuddling together and laughing- sometimes, it was all she wanted.

"I have six new clients, but I certainly wouldn't get your hopes up," Erin replied. "I haven't even introduced myself to half of them yet." She started to stand. "And I'd love to tell you about it but I'm pretty whacked. Thanks for dinner!"

"What?" Katie started. "Okay honey, but you gotta tell me about it in the morning!"

Erin waved towards Dan and, after dumping her dishes, headed for her bedroom.

So it wasn't exactly a lie, but sometimes she craved her own space. Even though she'd practically been on her own all day.

Erin stripped herself from clothes and climbed under the sheets. It was always a great feeling when she finally got back into bed.

She curled underneath the comforter, a quick scroll through her social media and then started up her Netflix. There would be something for her to binge until she felt like sleeping.

Monday was over, the busiest of her week. But the real work was just beginning.


	2. Jay

_*Two Months Earlier *_

Jay Halstead stared at his computer screen. He felt like he'd been doing so for the past five hours. In reality, it had probably been five minutes.

His right elbow rested against the desk, his chin balanced in his open palm. His other hand used his cursor to scroll through his computer data.

Chicago PD Intelligence Unit. Detective. It had been his job for the past five years, a military history before that. Most of the time it was action-action-action but apparently not today.

He'd been working on the same case for about a week now. And there was a piece of his crime jigsaw missing. He just couldn't figure out what the hell it was.

And there was another reason he was sat behind his desk. There wasn't a violent streak in Jay's body, yet that turned into a different story when it came to his job. When it came to the protection of his own-

So he'd lashed out. A moment of apprehension and horror, the realization that you're not armed but the bad guy is. He'd thrown just a couple of punches.

It was desk duty to cool off. And he was thanking God that the shift was almost done. So he could get home to Jasmine. To ask her that burning question he'd rehearsed in his mind lately.

Jay checked the hands on his watch. 4:45. A perfectly acceptable time to cut out. By the time he'd logged out of his computer, locked his desk and pulled free a velvet box from his drawers, it was almost 5pm anyway.

The district was quiet and Jay was thankful for that. It made for a quick get-away.

He found the car promptly, reversed out of the lot and headed for the highway. If time was on his side, it would take 23 minutes exactly to get home.

Jay ran a hand through his hair. Was he sweating? Oh Jeez, he was sweating, wasn't he? His free foot tapped up and down next to the pedals.

He turned down the window to let air into the car. The breeze hit him suddenly, a breath of fresh air from the outside.

His mind floated to Jasmine. Hopefully she'd be waiting for him at home. He knew her work schedule: Jas was pretty much always home an hour earlier than him.

As he neared their block, he spotted a blue Prius next to their driveway. Jay's mood dropped a little: not Jasmine's car. Hers was there, but this car was unfamiliar. Which meant his girlfriend wasn't alone. And he wanted her to be alone.

Their apartment was quiet. Jay locked the door behind him and called out.

"Jas?" There was no reply at first, but he heard a stirring from the bedroom. Jasmine met him in the hallway minute later, dressed in her bathrobe.

"Hi baby," she rushed to Jay and kissed his cheek. "Can I make you dinner?"

"Sure," he returned her affections, kissing her forehead. "I'm just gonna get changed real quick."

Her eyes widened, but Jay didn't see. "Wait," she cut in. "Come into the kitchen first, tell me about your day." Jasmine pulled on his arm, guiding him towards where they ate, further away from where they slept.

"I can do that over dinner," he protested. "I stink."

"I don't care," Jasmine shrugged, not giving in. "Just come into the kitchen with me."

"Stop it Jas," he frowned, thinking she was acting strange. And when he thought about it, Jasmine was in her bathrobe before dinner and that was a weird thing to see. He took a sneaky glance closer: it looked as though she was naked underneath. "What is-" his focus shifted between his girlfriend and the doorway to their bedroom.

It didn't take Jay long to put two and two together. Like solving a puzzle, he was a Detective after all. The unfamiliar car outside, Jasmine not in clothes, like she'd thrown something on to cover herself.

One look back at her and Jay was sprinting along the hallway to the bedroom.

Jasmine was hot on his heels, her bare feet running behind him on the carpet. She attempted to cling to his arm but Jay's attention was on opening the door.

"Wait!" Jasmine repeated. "It's not what it looks like-"

Jay didn't reply, his eyes widening as he scanned their bedroom. Did something look different? Something did.

"What's going on, Jas?" he tried not to speak through gritted teeth. Jay walked over to his side of the bed, the one nearest the window. If it wasn't the bed, it felt there was definitely something different about the air.

He folded his arms across his chest, glared at his girlfriend. Jay couldn't read the look that was on her face: was there a hint of guilt? He knew her.

Jasmine was biting her lip. "I was ready to take a shower," she shrugged her shoulders. "You're being weird, Jay."

So, she was calling him paranoid. He wanted to believe her. Jay looked around his bedroom again. Things were where he'd left them: the washed uniform beside his bedpost, his fancy watch on Jasmine's vanity, his paperwork still in a pile by the window.

Okay, he believed her. There was a reason his emotions were at a high, and that reason was burning a hole in his pants pocket. It pressed against his groin.

"You're right, I'm sorry," he said apologetically, walking towards her. Jay pressed a light kiss into her hair. He gushed when she wrapped her arms loosely around his waist.

Jay cursed himself for thinking it. Jasmine had been about to take a shower, she offered to cook him dinner. The Prius could belong to anybody; they were probably visiting a neighbor.

"Start dinner if you wanna," he offered. "I'm gonna get changed real quick," he said again.

Jasmine's eyes widened but her lips remained closed. She chewed her lip, watching in horror as Jay walked toward his section of their slide-open closet.

His back to her, Jay didn't see her face. And he was only half-paying attention as he reached into the second drawer when he kept his sweats. It was only when he opened the closet further that he noticed the bundles of his clothes that had fallen from their hanging position.

Jay reached into the darkness, jolting backwards suddenly when he felt something. Something hard.

His pace quickened as he moved everything back from where it'd fallen.

Then he noticed the guy hiding there, dressed in nothing except underwear, his knees huddles beneath his chin in a crouch.

"I fucking knew it!" Jay dropped the clothes he held onto the floor. His hands instead grabbed for the guy that had been hiding beneath his belongings. "What the fuck…is this?"

Cursing twice in one breath. They deserved it.

The other two in the room were quiet. The guy- somebody that Jay didn't recognize- made no attempt to dress himself. Instead he stood there, in front of Jay, staring at Jasmine. She started to cry.

"Let me explain," her tears became sobs.

"It looks pretty self-explanatory to me!" Jay stormed towards the bedroom door, his hands balled into fists. "Who's this asshole?" he forced himself to look at the intruder. Looks wise, he was the complete opposite of Jay: dirt blond hair, brown eyes, little muscle. He was beginning to unravel his clothes in a hurry. Good. Jay was glad he felt intimidated.

It was then Jay noticed the logo on the man's shirt: the same logo Jasmine wore daily on her chest. A guy from her company.

"Pete," the stranger mumbled, averting his eyes from Jay. He was clothed again but didn't look any less uncomfortable. Clearly he hadn't planned on getting caught. Caught after screwing Jay's girlfriend.

Jay was reeling. He thumped a hand against the doorframe. "Oh! Nice of you to introduce yourself," he spoke through clenched teeth. "Get out of my house."

Pete didn't need to be told again. In another minute, he'd scurried past Jay and the room was silent until they heard the click of the apartment door.

"Jay-" Jasmine took a weary step towards him.

"Don't," he looked towards her, his face a cocktail of anger, hurt and confusion.

Jay regained his posture and made for the kitchen, running a sweaty palm through his hair. When he reached it, Jay leaned against the counter: more for support than anything. His legs felt like they could give way and he'd crumble into a heap.

He sniffed. Jay had a handle on his emotions most of the time, but finding out his love wasn't reciprocated for somebody? That was enough to hurt even the toughest of guys.

"Jay!" Jasmine flew into the kitchen. She ducked beneath one of his arms so she was between his torso and the counter. "Baby, that was a huge mistake. It didn't mean anything," was her plea.

"How long?" he managed, his eyes still on the floor.

"I don't-"

"How..long?!" Both his tone and his temperature were rising. Jay willed himself backwards, putting weight on his heels, so there was distance between them.

She looked at him blankly, as though playing the victim.

"Jasmine, I deserve to know!"

Her lower lip quivered. For a moment, Jay thought he wasn't gonna get an answer. "It only happened… a few times."

Jay stared at her, fighting to believe the words she was saying. "So it must have meant something!"

Jasmine was shaking her head repeatedly from side to side. She closed the space between them again, trapping both of Jay's cheeks in her palms.

"It didn't mean anything," an attempt to sound sincere. "I'm in love with you, Jay."

"You have a funny way of showing it!" Right away, he pulled back. The thought of Jasmine with someone else- fucking someone else- made him wanna throw up.

A minute passed before either of them said anything. Jasmine sat herself at their dining table, her face hidden by her hands. Their table was already set for dinner, he noticed, with two places set out. A meal that now seemed like a lifetime away.

Jay finally stepped towards the table, taking out the box from his pocket and throwing in onto the table with a thud.

"What is…" the noise made her jump. She looked wide-eyed at the purple box in front of her. "Baby, what is this?"

Refusing to sit, Jay leaned on his elbows on one of the vacant chairs. "What does it look like? It's an engagement ring," the words left his mouth quietly. "And stop with the affectionate nicknames Jasmine. Stop it." He was surprised at how calm he sounded when inside, he was on fire.

"You were gonna…propose?" she looked up at him.

Jay shrugged. "Yeah. I was gonna, his tone was icy. "But that doesn't matter anymore." He picked up the box just as quickly as he'd dropped it and threw it halfway across the room. Then he was pacing: the full length of the room like he couldn't stand still.

"We still could," Jasmine said calmly. "Get married, I mean."

Jay laughed, his head shaking. Hell, his whole freaking body shaking. "I'm sorry, were you not in that room? Our bedroom? Where you've just been fucking somebody else?" he paused, took a deep breath. "I hate to break it to you but that's not how a relationship works!" He slammed an open palm against the wall. Immediately, he regretted it. He nursed it in his other hand. "Mother f-"

Jasmine's upset was turning to rage. What right did she have to be angry?

She stood from the table, a flare in her eyes. "You know," now she spoke in a hiss. "It wouldn't have happened at all if you paid half as much attention to me as you did your job."

"What?"

"You heard me. When I wake up in the morning, you're gone. When I get home, you're still gone. You're never at home!" Her voice hitched, got higher with each exclamation. "If you didn't spend your life at that fucking District then I wouldn't have to look in other places!"

Jay couldn't believe what she was saying. "Don't you dare try and turn this on me!"

A wicked smile passed Jasmine's lips. It was like she was different person to the girl Jay had dated for the past three years.

Who am I kidding? he thought. She is a different person.

"But it is your fault, Jay," she seethed. "If you'd only paid more attention to me…"

He didn't even wanna satisfy her with an answer. He couldn't get this new image of her out of his mind. Had it really just been this evening he'd been planning to propose? To spend the rest of his life with her?

The anger was beginning to pass: he felt numb more than anything else. What he did know though, was that he couldn't be in the same place as her right now.

With one more look in her direction, Jay made his way to the opposite side of the apartment, back to their bedroom. As much as he didn't want to be there, he needed to pack a bag. Gather some stuff together so he didn't have to return for a while.

He grabbed the nearest holdall: the small suitcase he used for undercover stuff, opened it and threw it onto the bed. Jay reached for several pairs of jeans, t-shirts and such. There would be more time to come back for more clothes later. When he felt calmer. Less stressed. Less upset. Less angry.

"So you're just gonna leave like this?" Jasmine had appeared in the doorway without him noticing.

"I think it's the best idea, don't you?" he continued focussing on his packing. "I mean… I can't sleep in this bed, can I?" He purposely turned the question back onto Jasmine, she was the one in the wrong after all.

"Yes you can," she wriggled a shoulder free from her bathrobe. Jay stole the quickest glance at her bare shoulder. When she noticed his attention, she ran towards him.

"You can't throw this away!" she pleaded, resting her head against him. "I won't let you-"

"Let me?" Jay hated himself for retaliating. "I don't think that's your decision to make. We're done," he forced himself away from her. What did he still need? Underwear, socks, a cell phone charger…

Where would he go? His brother was first choice. Jay was sure Will would let him crash, even for a few days.

He worked the zipper on his holdalls, the only other noises in the room being the ticking of the bedside alarm clock and a whimper from Jasmine. A small cry that would usually make his heart ache and want to comfort her.

But it didn't. Instead, it riled him. She'd been cheating yet still making him feel as though she was the victim.

That was the night he vowed it. Vowed to himself he wouldn't fall in love again, until he figured it was a girl he wanted to spend his life with. And something, the tiniest part inside of him, yelled out: but what if he never had that opportunity again?

* * *

Jay had done the 'grieving for a relationship' thing. He'd done it to the max: those late nights after work drowning his emotions in a bar with beer and tequila shots. Actions that usually ended in bad decisions.

It'd been a couple of months since his break-up and he hadn't spoken to Jasmine since the day he'd left the apartment. Not in person, anyway. There had been an iMessage exchange- in which he'd told her when he was going back for the rest of his belongings. In not so many words, he'd requested her to be out.

And she had been, thank God. Yet, when he'd stumbled into the hallway, it was like he'd never left. His mug he used for morning coffee out on the kitchen counter, a pair of muddy work-boots by the radiator, piles of men's T-shirts on the bed…

Not his stuff. Ah, so she hadn't waited a while to move him in.

He'd left a small indent in the apartment hallway, and everlasting souvenir for Jasmine. Because she was planning on keeping the apartment, Jay knew that much.

She didn't get to keep the furniture that had been his though: the dining take and vanity from the spare bedroom had gone into storage.

Will had been doing a pretty good job of taking his mind off the whole situation. In fact, he was partly to blame for how much time Jay was spending in bars. One of which, they were in now.

"Long day?" Will bought their third round, and spoke as he brought their bottles to the table. "And don't even bother lying to me, because you know you can't."

Jay shrugged.

"Quit moping," Will scolded. He stared at his brother. "It's definitely over, right?"

A nod from Jay. "Yup," he gave a one word answer, then took another swig of beer. "You of all people should know how I feel about cheating-"

"Jay-" Will knew what his younger brother was referring to. They didn't talk about it a lot.

"Dad cheated on Mom. A shit load of times. I can't be with a cheat." The subject always agitated Jay. This time was no different: Will could tell by the way Jay locked his jaw and gulped down his beer with force.

"You say cheat like it's a curse word. You reckon you coulda added it any more in that sentence?" Will teased.

"Don't be an asshole," Jay reached to thump his shoulder. In reality though, he was thankful for his brother's distraction. And for giving him a place to crash.

Will held hands up in surrender, he knew how to push Jay's buttons; how to wind him up. "So, you've cleared out the apartment now huh?"

"Yeah," Jay exhaled, as though it was a sigh of relief. He had indeed returned their several times to retrieve his stuff.

"I don't wanna sounds like a bore, or a nag but-" Will changed the subject.

"But you're gonna?" Jay guessed.

"It's just the whole living thing. You can't be sleeping on my couch forever."

Jay knew it was coming. Up to now, he'd already been at Will's place for nearly two months. It was longer than he'd anticipated, not to mention the new existence of the creak in his neck from sleeping on a couch. Although, he was unsure of his next move.

It had been years since he'd last needed a realtor's help: someone who would sort him out somewhere to live. So long, in fact, that the realtor company he'd used for his apartment he shared with Jasmine probably didn't exist anymore. If it did, things had probably changed drastically.

"I know," Jay agreed with his brother. He did need his own space again; they both did. He tossed back the dregs of his beer. "I'll start looking."

Will chuckled. "Well you're not going to do it tonight, are you?" he laughed. "Your round."


	3. Meet Cute

Erin didn't sleep good. She couldn't remember falling asleep but it felt like she'd woken up an hour later and had been restless ever since.

That was never a good sign for a Monday. It meant she would probably be in a bad mood- if coffee couldn't fix it.

Erin yawned, stretched and rolled herself free from the comforter. The morning run could be an evening run tonight. She headed straight for the shower. It wasn't a minute before Kate joined her.

"Oh God, I feel like death!" Kate shouted.

Erin laughed, loud enough for her roommate to hear her over the running water. She knew why Kate felt this way: Dan was in the south for a few days so their 'girls night' from Friday had practically lasted the whole weekend. And they both let their hair down, big style. Unlike Kate though, Erin knew when to stop.

"There is an actual elephant standing on my face!" Kate groaned. She sat against the bath-tub, resting her palms against her temples. "What did you do to me?"

"Hey, I didn't do anything!" she turned off the water. "Gimme the towel?"

Kate obliged slowly, at the pace of a tortoise- meaning Erin was almost dry before she'd even stepped out of the shower.

"How much did we have to drink?" Kate cringed, resting her forehead against her roomie's shoulder.

Erin racked her brains. She cringed too- how _much_ had they drank Saturday night? It wasn't often she got buzzed but when she did, she went hard. Which was the reason behind why Erin had felt yesterday the way Kate was feeling today.

"I don't even wanna think about what we had in that bar," Erin said. All that was coming to mind were empty cocktail tumblers and a messy mix of funky colored shots. "But I do think you finished off three bottles of wine last night," she remembered, watching as the realization grew on Kate's face. She patted her roommate's shoulder sympathetically. "You're not feeling great today, huh?" she teased.

Kate shot her a look; one that told Erin to shut up. "And I have that marketing meeting today-"

"What time?"

"Three, I think," it took a second for the words to reach Kate's face. "Back to bed for me!" she added gleefully.

For a minute, Erin envied her. She herself could probably do with another hour in bed. But she had a job to go to: clients to see, properties to sell.

When she was dressed, Erin went to flask up her coffee. She thought about the day that awaited her. Since this time last week, she had crossed off four of her six new clients, managing to find them places to live. The only two that remained were the two girls and the newly-joined family. And hopefully, they would be sorted today.

She shouted a quick "see you later" to Kate but, with no reply, she guessed she was sleeping already.

There was traffic, a fuck load of traffic. After no sleep and still sipping her coffee, Erin's impatience was growing. Time stuck on the road meant less time doing her job.

She exhaled deep, thinking. _Her day could only get better, right?_ That was one way to think about it: somebody was always having a worse day.

Erin edged the car forward slowly. Traffic going at a snail pace, it was one of the things she hated most.

Her cell phone sprung to life, her own this time not the one she used for work. Her mood didn't improve any when she saw it was her boss, Mitch. Erin let out a groan: she could already picture how the conversation was gonna go. The hands-free lit up.

"Erin? Where are you?"

"I'm stuck in a jam," she sighed. Erin couldn't sense what mood he was in from his tone yet. _Was he pissed?_ He had no right to be though: it wasn't like she got stuck on purpose.

There was a groan from the other end of the line. "Shit. Is it bad?"

Erin craned her neck. All she could see were tail lights, but the line didn't look endless. She made an educated guess. "I think I'll be there in less than an hour," she replied.

"Okay," came the response. "Just get in when you can. You know how much I need you here."

Erin's mouth twisted. His attempt at compliments somehow always sounded creepy.

"I'll wait off on the meeting until you get here," Mitch clicked off the line.

The meeting had slipped Erin's mind because there hadn't been one last week.

She ended up in the traffic for a further 30 minutes. Erin reached the office block and grabbed what she needed before locking the car behind her.

It was like she was the last to arrive: everybody was at their work stations yet didn't appear to be doing any work. Erin hurried along the hallway, over to where Joe and Nancy stood.

"Morning," Joe's tone was warm ad it surprised Erin how much she wanted to hear it. Nancy greeted her with a smile. They didn't have time to talk though, Mitch suddenly appeared from around the corner.

"Ah, so my team is all here!" Mitch's attention halted on Erin. There was a strange grin plastered on his face. That was nothing new though; she was used to Mitch's attempts at advances. "Shall we?"

At the opposite end of the hallway to most of the offices, J&J had a room set out auditorium style, a room used for their weekly Monday morning meeting. Erin knew why it was set out this way: it was Mitch's opportunity to once again be center stage, addressing his employees.

Erin sat near the back, between Nancy and Joe. She hadn't yet finished her coffee either, although it was cold..she still sipped it quietly as the rest of her colleagues filtered into the vacant seats.

"I wonder what he has to say today," Joe attempted to whisper. He apparently didn't know what that was though, his tones travelling so everybody heard.

"I won't keep you guys long," Mitch began, his hands stroking down non-existent creases in his suit. "There's word that we have a rival realtor opening on the other side of the block." He stared around the room, his eyes resembling little more than slits. "If this is true, there's gonna be competition. None of you have new clients today, I want you to focus on the remaining ones you have left." Mitch cleared his throat. "Some new apartments and condos came onto the market this morning too. Now, happy selling!" Mitch opened his hands in gesture as though to dismiss his workers.

The room began to empty but Erin waited with the other two until the noise died down.

"Most pointless meeting… _ever_ ," Nancy rolled her eyes and the other two nodded their agreement. She moved out of her seat first, Joe and Erin followed.

"No new clients is weird, right?" Erin voiced her concern as the others walked her back to her office. "You think he's not telling us something? Like something's happened?"

Joe let out a burst of breath. "Oh _please_ Linds," he halted by the door of her spacious office and rested against the doorframe, arms folded. "If there was anything to know, you know the first person he'd tell would be you," he pointed towards her, as if to reinforce what he was saying. He puffed out his chest, balled his hands into fists. "Erin, hey, I gotta tell you something… blah blah blah," his eyes rolled.

Erin and Nancy burst into simultaneous laughter.

"Please don't ever do an impression of our boss again," Erin said when she finally caught her breath. She wiped a tear away from her bottom eyelid: Joe could always brighten the atmosphere. It was like the bad start to her day ceased to exist anymore.

Her attention drifted to the door of her office. "Alright you two, get outta my way. I have work to do," Erin unlocked her door in a swift movement and reached around to flick on the light-switch.

Joe wandered back to his own workplace but Nancy lingered. Erin's back was to her until she'd thrown herself into her swivel chair. Whilst she waited for the computer to start up, she noticed Nancy still in the doorway, biting her lip.

Erin frowned. "You okay, Nance?"

"Yeah I, uh…I need a favor," Nancy didn't wait to be invited in, but closed the door behind her. She plonked herself in the chair Erin usually kept for clients.

The uncertainty of her friend's tone made her look up. "What's up?"

"How many clients did you find properties for last week?" Nancy asked.

"Four," Erin answered quickly. Sometimes she hesitated to share work successes with her workmates. A lot of them would tease her for how good at her job she was. That thought never crossed her mind when it came to Nancy and Joe though. They were the two she was closest with at work.

"Shit," Nancy shook her head, but it wasn't as though she expected anything less. She knew how good Erin was at her job. Sometimes that fact made her envious. But most of the time it meant she was at an advantage: at times like these when she needed Erin's help.

"Why?" Erin looked confused. She was pretty intrigued at Nancy's request. If she would only spit it out. "What's up with you?"

Nancy looked like she was making herself more comfortable. Or rather, it was an attempt at doing so. The look on her face told Erin she wasn't comfortable at all.

"So Mitch gave me three new clients last week," Nancy said, stalling. She knew Erin already knew that. "The first two he emailed me, I got them sorted in a couple of days."

"Nice one Nance," Erin cut in, thinking her friend would appreciate praise. She made her voice sound genuine, not condescending. There were people who didn't click with the job like she did.

"This last guy I have- _nothing_ is going right. I know Mitch would kill me if I lost him a client…"

Erin leaned back, crossing her legs beneath the desk. The last thing she wanted was a difficult client, but that was what Nancy was implying.

"You want me to help you?" Erin guessed. "I can't-"

"I'm saying…could we swap clients? I know it's not something we usually do," (she was right, Mitch usually paired specific potential clients with particular realtors) "but I think you'll be able to help this guy more than I can."

So the difficult customer was a guy. Erin's brow crinkled. "What makes you think that?"

Nancy seemed to come to life. "Oh come _on_ Erin, you know how good you are at this stuff! It's why you're at the top," she sighed. "I can't afford to be trying to please this client until I find something, or for him to get pissed at me then choose another company. Can you imagine what Mitch-"

"Get me his paperwork then."

Nancy's eyes widened. "What?"

Erin laughed. "Get me what you have so far. Before I change my mind," she teased.

Nancy was back in the room again quickly. She tossed a file at Erin and sat back down in the vacant chair.

"I've shown him three properties already," she sighed, resting her head against one of her palms on the chair arm. "The first place I was pretty proud of, it was a great location. But as soon as he saw it was an apartment, he said no. Told me he said to me already he didn't _want_ an apartment. But I swear he didn't," Nancy shook her head.

Erin twiddled her thumbs. She'd had clients before that she hadn't figured out right away. Perhaps Nancy was lacking patience? But she was still venting about the guy:

"…so the second place was a condo. In a place surrounded by stores. You know, you wouldn't have to go far to the drug store or for clothes or whatever," Nancy groaned. "He said he'd feel cheap living above a shop. And he suggested the next property I took him to be in a nicer area," her eyes rolled as she recalled the conversation.

Erin let out a noise that wasn't quite a laugh. Nancy's current situation was relatable, for sure. But she knew the answer when it came to things like this: resilience. Erin had a lot of that.

She was intrigued. "And what happened with the third property?"

This time, Nancy laughed. "Okay, by this point I'm pretty sure the guy doesn't even like me. You get those clients that you gel with straight away, right? This time, it's not one of those. The third place was a disaster. Remember that gorgeous terraced house Mitch sent through last week?"

Erin certainly did. What she'd give to live in a place like that. She'd fallen in love with the images Mitch had sent through: old-fashioned regal style with greenery out front. But there was only one client on her list that would have liked it, plus there would be a crazy high amount of interest in it. Erin had left it for another client to snag up.

"I met him outside the row of houses," Nancy began again. "It's unusual for a client to arrive before me but I got stuck on the highway. When I got there, he already looked pissed. Like he didn't wanna be there," she paused to shrug her shoulders. "Said he didn't have a lot of time. He seemed unimpressed with the outside."

"Oh, come on!" Erin slammed her desk. "It's beautiful-"

"Yeah, well, I took him inside. The family in there right now had tidied the place real good. But he just sort of freaked out. Said he couldn't live somewhere like this," Nancy sighed. "He also kept checking his watch, like he didn't want to be there. We didn't even get to the upstairs of the house. He excused himself and drove off. That was Friday afternoon and well…" she trailed off, having finished the anecdote.

"If I wasn't engaged, I would have said he was cute. _Really_ cute. Too young for me though, obviously," Nancy laughed.

So did Erin. Nancy was only five years older than her – 33- but she sometimes acted older, like Erin's work mom.

"I just feel like you can find him a place better than I can. Everything I've picked…I'm barking up the wrong tree completely."

"He definitely sounds like a challenge," Erin agreed, pulling the folder towards her. "So he didn't give you any requirements or things to avoid?" She would need to know so she could find this guy somewhere to move into.

"Apparently not an apartment," Nancy reminded her. "Which is weird, I don't get it. I thought an apartment woulda been perfect for him."

"No apartments, got it," Erin made a mental note. "So, a swap right? You wanna take one of my clients?"

Nancy nodded. "If I don't, I won't have any work to do," she laughed.

Erin clicked her computer. She scrolled for a minute. "Here, take the Kelling-Newton's," she thought it was a good idea. "You know more about families than I do," she tried to boost Nancy's confidence in herself.

Her printer came to life and Erin walked over to it, grabbing what Nancy needed. "There's mom, dad and two sets of twins," she revealed. "And all of the kids want their own bedrooms," she watched Nancy's face drop.

It was a minute before her friend spoke. "On second thought, maybe I'll stick with Mr-"

Erin waggled a finger. "Hey, no backtracking!" She could at least offer some advice though. "Come on, it's not gonna be that difficult to find somewhere," she continued. "What about that new extension that just came up by Burnham?"

A smile spread across Nancy's face. She stood up, sensing she now had work to do. "You're a genius."

"Yeah I know," Erin laughed, watching as Nancy left her office. "I know."

* * *

Jay slammed an open palm against the desk. The one that separated him from the piece of shit that sat opposite.

"Listen here, you son of a bitch," his eyes widened, they always did when he was agitated. "Either you tell me where the girl is or I swear to God you will never see the light of day again," he said through gritted teeth.

The other occupant of the Interrogation Room said nothing. His mouth was clamped shut.

They were the kind of individuals that annoyed Jay the most: this guy clearly knew more than he was letting on. He was gonna be sitting on the cold metal chair until he had something to say.

"You're really gonna keep that information to yourself, huh?" Jay was alone with the dude: nobody else there to bear witness to what happened inside the room. It was unusual, most of the time there were two officers present with a felon. Not just one.

The more Jay continued to interrogate, the less the other guy spoke. He even looked relaxed in the chair, making himself at home and leaning back against the metal. It can't have been comfortable but he avoided eye contact with the Detective, who was losing his patience by the second.

It was one of the cases Jay hated the most: a missing person. In this instance, a 20-year-old student. And the criminal sitting in front of him knew where she was.

Jay shot out of the chair quickly, leaning close to appear intimidating. The other guy jumped but then regained his composure. It wasn't his first time being arrested- knowing that keeping his mouth shut would prevent Jay from taking things further.

"You don't wanna talk to me?" the Detective slammed his palm against the metal table. "Fine. Then you get the big guns." Jay took a breath and walked towards the door. He opened it, got out and locked it behind him. He didn't have time for pricks like him: his main concern being finding the missing girl.

On his way back to the bullpen, he passed Adam Ruzek battling with another individual. A guy in handcuffs. He noticed Jay as they passed.

"We got her," his workmate confirmed. "She's been found. This one here gave them up."

It was a weight off Jay's shoulders. Although he was disappointed he hadn't been personally involved in her finding. It had been a big complicated case, one that he was glad he wasn't on desk duty for.

One that he couldn't shake free from, even when he wasn't at work.

In a lot of ways, it was what Jay needed: something to work on to keep his mind far from his personal life.

He nodded in Ruzek's direction, the Detectives had a way of communicating without words. The main aim of the case complete, all that mattered now was punishing those responsible. Jay watched as his colleague shuffled past to dispose of the guy in a cell.

Jay checked the time on his watch. It was almost 4:35, a pretty appropriate time to check out when you've been at work since 8am. He made his way to the locker room: picking up his belongings and going back to Will's for a shower sounded like a dream.

He unclipped his badge free from his jeans, did the same with his gun holster and stuffed them both into his bag. He never kept them in his locker even when he was off duty, it just felt safer.

Jay pulled his jacket free and sat for a minute. During his work hours, he kept his cell phone in the pocket of it. It was his way of not getting distracted, the only time he sometimes checked it was on his lunch break.

He touched the home button to spark it to life. There was a text from his brother, swearing to kill him if he didn't take over dinner duties. Jay laughed then, responding with the middle finger emoji. _He had to cook dinner too_? He guessed it was only fair, he had been crashing on Will's furniture for a while.

There was an unexpected message there too: a new voicemail in his inbox. From a number he didn't have saved, which was strange: the cell was obviously only for personal stuff. The handset on his desk took care of calls from strangers.

The number had called him twice before leaving the answer message. His brows grew confused. Jay listened to the voicemail:

 _Good afternoon Mr…_ (there was a pause for a few seconds and he heard the rustle of a few papers) _Halstead. I'm calling from J &J realtors, I'm Erin Lindsay. I … I know one of my colleagues has shown you around a few places. I think I could help with what you're looking for. Could you give me a call back and we could arrange a meeting? It's-" _

And then she'd reeled off her number. Perhaps she hadn't realized her digits would already be in his phone from earlier.

Jay ran a hand through his hair. He was feeling something: was it relief? The woman on the phone had mentioned the chick who had already shown him three properties. What was her name again? _Nancy?_

He had to admit he felt shitty for losing his cool with her on several occasions. She was obviously just trying to do her job. But there was just something in each of the homes he'd seen that had reminded him of something. A glimpse of the past that he wanted to forget about.

The first apartment the representative had taken him to was exactly the same layout as the place he'd shared with his ex. And Jay knew he couldn't think like that but he'd had a blip. Told her he didn't want an apartment.

Her second offer had been a tougher area, not that he was high maintenance or anything. There was another reason he couldn't live there though: one of his major CI's lived in the area. Jay couldn't explain why he hadn't just told the realtor the truth. Maybe if they'd clicked more from the offset then perhaps he would have discussed his profession, the fact he was on the Intelligence Unit.

The third house was better, although he hadn't even seen the upstairs. It was the family dynamic that had triggered him, not to mention the Prius that had been parked in the driveway. It had conjured up a scenario in his mind: the owner of the Prius running around with their mini-me's. Perhaps like what would happen with his ex-girlfriend and her new partner…

Jay found himself listening to the message again. She sounded professional, yet friendly. Plus, she could only be better than the first lady he'd had.

He made a mental note to return her call when he reached his brother's place.

Another text from Will came through on his drive home: he'd be working later into the night so told him not to bother cooking. Secretly Jay was glad: if he was honest, he couldn't be bothered to cook.

When he reached Will's place, Jay changed into sweats after a quick shower. He crashed on the couch with a healthy helping of cereal.

His phone vibrated again in his pocket with an email coming through. But it served as a reminder that he had to call back the realtor.

Jay didn't know what hours they worked there, they could be closed by now. But it was only right that he returned the call.

The ringing filled his ears for a minute until he heard a click.

"Mr Halstead?"

He cleared his throat. "Jay," he led with. "Is this…uh,"

"Erin Lindsay," she reminded him, and he heard a small giggle. "I, uh, tried you earlier but-"

"Yeah, I was working," Jay balanced his cell between his shoulder and his ear. He'd said less that ten words to this girl and the conversation flow was already easier than the other realtor. "But I got your message."

"Good to know," another laugh. It was her turn to clear her throat. "I'm gonna be show you around now, if that's alright with you. I'm sure we'll be able to find you somewhere to live."

Jay nodded to himself: she sounded _pretty_ confident. That impressed him: she was way more forward that the other one had been.

"Um…Jay?"

"Sorry, I was thinking. What did you say?"

"I said I prefer to meet with my clients in person. You're not by any chance free tonight, are you?"

Jay looked down at the phone screen. It was after 6. He wondered why she was working so late.

"It's not protocol but I figured you're already a client of the business," she continued. "You do know where our office is, right?"

He did. It was a ten minute drive from where Will lived. He'd also visited it once before, also with his brother, when he'd expressed interest in that particular realtor. When he'd picked up the leaflet for J&J. It had also been his brother's idea to go with this choice of realtor.

"I could be there in maybe 15 minutes tops?" he replied. It wasn't like he had anything else to do.

"Perfect," she said. "I'm the only one in the office right now, but if you just call when you get here and I'll buzz you right up."

Jay raised his eyebrows. She seemed in such a good mood for what time of day it was. She seemed like a woman who enjoyed her job. He was already moving from the couch, he couldn't go in sweats.

"See you soon, Ms Lindsay."

* * *

The building looked different at night. Jay parked up outside and looked at the real estate offices. It was almost completely in darkness with the exception of the far right corner. He noticed a shadow just out of his view on the other side of the window.

Jay's index finger hovered over the buzzer before he pressed it. Her voice came through the intercom he was stood next to: it was pretty obvious J&J was a high-end realtors.

"Jay?"

"Hi," he found himself grinning. Aside from his brother, his team and several criminals, he hadn't hung out with many people lately. Perhaps he was looking forward to the company more than anything.

He waited a moment until hearing the door click open. Once inside, Jay looked in both directions before he saw movement.

"Jay," she repeated his name and flicked something so light illuminated the lobby. "I'm-"

"Miss Lindsay," he finished and took the hand she offered.

"Oh God, please. Enough with the formalities. I'm Erin," she tossed her hair behind her, the loose curls flicking against her pant-suit jacket. "My office is this way."

Jay followed a step behind her. He'd seen her for all of two seconds but he knew a pretty girl when he seen one. Maybe her appearance was even more enhanced because he'd been hanging out around _guys_ for the past two months.

He'd be lying if he told himself he didn't find her attractive. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt his ego that she was his new realtor: in charge of finding him somewhere to live.

"Can I get you a coffee or anything?" she led the way into her office, directed Jay to the comfy seat adjacent to her desk.

Jay looked at her, shook his head. I'm good, thanks. Just how long are you gonna be keeping me here?" he attempted a joke.

Erin looked confused. "I thought this was convenient for you-"

He held up his hands in defence, a move he was particularly familiar with but usually being on the receiving end of it. "That was a pathetic attempt at humor. Forgive me," he smiled at her.

"Oh!" color rushed to her cheeks. "So, I hope you don't mind Nancy and I switching it up. She mentioned you guys had some difficulty-"

"Agreeing," they both said at the same time. Jay nodded his confirmation.

Erin continued. "Our manager. I don't usually tell people this but he pairs us with clients that will work well with us," she shrugged. "I guess he got it wrong in your case."

Jay nodded, she was speaking obvious sense. She was speaking his own thoughts. "Maybe I was a little harsh," he admitted. "But I wanted someone to be able to find me _the_ place, you know? And I wasn't sure she was the right person-"

An 'ahh' sound escaped her. "Maybe not," she said. "But I am."

Her confidence and enthusiasm in herself excited him. It filled him with the hope that he'd be out of Will's place in no time.

"So," Erin continued, keeping eye contact as she spoke. "A house?"

"Yup."

"Bedrooms?"

Jay frowned, _obviously_ he wanted bedrooms. Didn't all houses need bedrooms? It took him a second to clock that she meant how many. "I'm easy."

"Garden?"

"Sure?"

"Garage?"

"Of course."

"Location?"

Jay grinned. "Isn't that your job?"

"It would be," she licked her bottom lip quickly. "..if you weren't such a difficult client," she fought to keep a straight face.

Jay clutched his chest, played on the assumption he was offended. "Ouch," he sniggered. "That other chick tell you that?"

Erin's mouth dropped. Their conversation was steering far from professional. But she needed to make sure she still had his interests, that he was an invested buyer. And the best way to do that was to be friendly. "That other _chick_ is a friend of mine." She secretly knew where he was coming from though: Nancy was harmless but there had to be a reason why she only got half as many clients as Erin did. Especially since this taking over other agents' clients situation had happened before.

She studied his expression. "What's your budget?"

Jay relaxed his shoulders. He shrugged them.

"That's not helpful," she folded her arms. "How much are you looking to spend?"

"If you find me the right place, I don't care what I spend," he revealed, relaxing in the seat and folding his arms across his chest. The move he used regularly at work, when things were going in the direction he wanted them to. Like things were about to get interesting.

A smirk appeared on Erin's lips: if there was one thing she loved, it was a challenge. She reached for something in her top drawer. "This is my card. Because I'm gonna need to contact you and you're gonna need to contact me. It looks like we're gonna be spending a lot more time together."

 **Please Review!**


	4. Property 1 and An Invitation

Jay forced one eye open and he was immediately blinded by the morning sunshine; Will's blinds in the lounge weren't expert at keeping out the light. He stretched, forgetting where he was for a minute and thumped the top of his head against the arm of the couch.

"Fuck!" he cussed- quietly- still unsure on what time it was. He'd woken up before his alarm, which was strange. Jay _loved_ his sleep.

He rolled over onto his side and clicked the home button on his cell. Just before 6am, which meant there was no time to go back to sleep.

The rustling from the kitchen told him Will was already awake too. Jay threw the comforter off himself, running a hand through his morning bed-head as he headed into the kitchen.

"Morning," Will stood leaning against the counter, dressed in jeans and holding a coffee. "Want one?"

Jay nodded a response and wiped sleep from his eyes. He sat down at one of his brother's chairs. He let out a yawn.

Will thumped down a coffee mug in front of him, making Jay jump. Will laughed. "Late night?"

Jay shook his head, although Will probably thought the opposite. Anything further than 9pm was classed as 'late' for his workaholic brother. He was usually asleep before then.

"What time did you get in?" Will asked a second question.

Jay blew into his coffee. "I don't know, 9:30 at a guess?"

His brother raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? Where were you?" He walked the few steps to join where his younger brother sat.

This was one of the things Jay wasn't going to miss: the interrogation-like questions that came from Will. Whether it was just curiosity or his protective older brother behavior, Jay was unsure. But that didn't make it any less annoying. "I met with a realtor."

Both of Will's eyebrows disappeared beneath his flattened bed-head bangs. "Was she hot?"

Jay chuckled, shaking his head. This was _typical_ of Will. "What makes you think it was a she?"

"Oh, give me a break," Will rolled his eyes. "You wouldn't spend over three hours with her if she was a dude."

This also annoyed Jay, but in a different kind of way. How much his brother _knew_ him. Because it was true: if his realtor had been a dude, their conversation wouldn't have lasted so long. Plus, it would have been strictly about houses, it wouldn't have gone off on a tangent like the one he'd had with Erin…

"Hey I asked you a question. Was she hot?"

Jay ignored him: sometimes, though Will was in his 30s, he acted like a teenager. Like he was desperate for a gossip. And Jay didn't want to satisfy him with an answer.

"Cryptic," Will broke the temporary silence between them. "So does this mean I'm finally gonna get my couch back?" he teased.

Jay thumped his arm. "Not yet, I gotta find a place first. I'll be out as soon as I-"

"Don't sweat it, bro," Will replied, laughing at Jay's agitation. He took both of their empty mugs over to the sink. "Take all the time you need."

"You're gonna regret saying that," Jay teased back. "Alright, what's your day like?"

"I'm heading into Med in about 30 minutes for another 12 hours," Will acted pissed about it but Jay knew he loved his job. He was probably being bias but Will was one of the best doctors Jay had ever seen. "You?"

"I was thinking of getting a ride in with you? We got two jack-ass's in the cells yesterday who'd kidnapped this girl. She's in Med right now. I wanna go visit her."

"You're a good cop, Jay," his brother offered a compliment. "I'll be leaving in 20. If you're riding with me, hurry up and take a shower. You stink-"

Jay shot him a look across the room. He was planning on showering anyway but Will always found a way to tease. When he reached the door that led to the hallway, he spun quickly to face his brother.

"For the record, she's hot."

* * *

After his visit to Med, Jay felt perplexed. The girl was bruised up but at least she was conscious. And it had been his lucky day when she'd identified her captors: the same two that were still sitting in the cells. As soon as he'd promised her protection, that she was safe, he was on his way back to the District.

It was walking distance from Med, plus Jay remembered he didn't have his car anyway. When he reached his workplace, Jay headed straight for the locker room. He stripped himself free of his jacket and hung it up.

There hadn't been a specific time for him to be back at the District. The kidnapping case was almost over, after all. The only thing left to do was to charge the individuals responsible, both of whom they had locked up. _But they could wait a while longer_ Jay thought _it's the least they deserve._

His mind drifted back to his 'meeting' and conversation with Erin last night. He'd known from the moment she walked around the corner in the smart pant-suit that was she hot. The fact that she seemed great at her job only made her hotter.

Their conversation had stretched to almost three hours, though it had felt like two minutes.

"Am I interrupting?" Ruzek had appeared at the locker room entrance without Jay noticing.

Jay shook his head, thinking he must have been stuck deeper in his reminiscing than he thought. "What's up?"

"We're wanted in the bullpen," Ruzek said, then he disappeared again.

Jay slammed shut his locker and made for the stairs. He keyed in his code that let him through the protection barrier. There was a memo waiting for him on his desk.

He scanned through it quickly: the words "training" "patrol" and "overtime" jumping out at him. Basically, the boss was out for the rest of the week, they needed to do target training and there was overtime available on patrol.

He wanted to roll his eyes at the sight of "overtime"- he had a love/hate relationship with it. On the one hand, it was money. On the other, he had better things to do. Like finding somewhere to live.

Jay looked over at the opposite side of the room. Ruzek was sat staring at his computer screen. He narrowed his eyes. "I thought you said we were wanted?"

"I know. I was bored."

"Of course you were," Jay laughed and he started up his own monitor. He quickly typed his passcode and stared at the computer screen. There was paperwork he should be- could be- filling in. Instead, Jay reached into the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a packet of chocolate MnMs. He looked over the notes the boss had left.

He could be down for target practise. Jay folded over the candy packet, shocked at himself for not eating them all in one sitting, and headed towards the stairs again. Preferring to practise shooting his weapon alone, he didn't bother telling the rest of the team where he was going.

There were already a few from patrol downstairs. Jay grabbed the head gear he needed and walked towards a vacant target.

100% of his shots were on target and a smug smile worked its way across Jay's face. It wasn't difficult to determine he was one of the best shots in the unit. Yet, the boss still made him practise with the rest of them. _That's only fair I suppose_ he thought.

Jay was so focused on his practise that he almost missed his cell phone ringing. It was the vibration that told him somebody was calling. He didn't usually keep with him during his time at work, opting to leave it in his locker. Today, he'd kept it in his pocket and he pulled it out, pushing back his ear protection and pressing it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Hey Jay, it's me," her voice was chirpy and it automatically improved his mood.

Jay balanced his cell between his ear and shoulder blade whilst he disarmed himself. "Erin," he replied, struggling over the noise of the other shooters. "I wasn't expecting-"

At the same time he spoke, somebody else let off their gun. Jay heard a sharp breath on the other end of the line.

"What the hell?!" she shouted. "What happened? Are you okay?"

He'd forgotten he hadn't told her his profession. That he was armed with a gun daily. Jay cussed under his breath and walked quickly. "I'm fine," he shouted in reassurance before finally reaching the door and squeezing through it. "Can you hear me?"

"Forgive me for not sounding professional here but what the _fuck_?" Erin spoke quietly but he understood why. She didn't exactly sound like the well-spoken realtor he'd first been introduced to. "Was that…a gun shot?"

"Yes it was," Jay's tine was relaxed: she obviously hadn't expected what she'd heard. "But it's all good, I can explain when I see you. I guess that's why you're calling?"

There was a small laugh from her end. "I'd call myself predictable if this wasn't my job," she replied. "Are you good for a house viewing later?"

Jay paused to think about any existing plans he had for the evening. Nope. Nada. Even if he did, he had a feeling he would have blown them off. "Sure. What time were you thinking?"

Erin clicked her tongue. "I get out of my final meeting at 5:30. I could come get you after and we could drive there?" she waited a few seconds. "Where will you be?"

* * *

Erin said farewell to Jenny and Joanna, her last clients of the week she'd just found a home for. Technically speaking, second to last. She felt like fist-bumping herself, although she wasn't about to do that in public.

As soon as she'd handed over the keys to the two girls, she'd made her way back to the car. She was too early to make the journey to her next client so Erin turned on the radio and scrolled through her cell phone.

Her conversation with Jay earlier had given her an address to pick him up from. She wasn't sure, but swore the street name sounded familiar. Either way, she would find out in around 20 minutes.

Erin's mind fixated on that particular thing: her last client. One that shouldn't have been hers in the first place. And yet…

 _Had it really been a while since her last hot client or was this guy insanely attractive?_

Her 'work client' rule was at the forefront of her mind…but there was no harm in just enjoying her view. That had certainly been the case last night at their initial meeting. She hadn't tired at all of their conversation and she definitely hadn't tired of her view.

She was proud of herself for finding a potential property for him so quickly. Erin didn't think Nancy had given the guy enough credit: it wasn't that he was a particularly difficult customer, he just wanted a particular property.

Erin quickly checked the address Jay had forwarded and put her car into drive. As she reached the final corner, she knew why she'd recognized it. Jay had texted the name "Molly's", a bar at the opposite block to the Police District.

He was already outside waiting for her, leaning against the outer building, his attention on his phone screen. Erin looked through the window at him: it wasn't merely a coincidence that she could feel her heart-rate speed up. _Wasn't that what happened when your senses were at a high?_

She watched the slight furrow in his brown increase with his concentration on whatever was on his phone screen, watched again with a giggle as she beeped her car horn at him. Jay looked up and waved a hand in recognition before he made his way to her Jeep.

"'Evening," he spoke as he closed the passenger door behind him. He watched as she turned down the radio.

"Hi," she said and she glanced outside to where he'd been waiting. "Is this where you work?" she was being inquisitive, pointing at the bar.

Jay laughed and shook his head. "Uh almost," he pointed himself to the District steps. "That's where I work."

Erin felt her mouth drop open a little but she was facing the front so hoped her client didn't see. His profession was a revelation, although it wasn't any of her business. "Oh!" she put enthusiasm into her voice. "That's cool," she looked across at him, at what he was wearing. "But which-"

"I'm in the Intelligence Unit," Jay confessed, guessing what she was about to ask. It felt strangely comfortable to have a normal conversation, to stray away from the topic of just houses.

"Well remind me never to get on the wrong side of you," she laughed then immediately regretted what she'd said. _Maybe he wouldn't take it as the joke she'd intended._

To her relief, Jay let out a throaty laugh. He let the slight awkwardness of her comment fly out of the window. "I have to say, Erin, I'm impressed. We met yesterday and you've found me a place to view already? Nice work," he said.

It was always a good thing to get a compliment, especially from a client. The corners of Erin's lips lifted into a smile. She had a right to feel smug. "Don't get your hopes up yet," she replied. "You don't know if it'll be exactly what you're looking for."

"I trust you know what you're doing," Jay replied. "Besides, if you were paying attention to our conversation about what I wanted yesterday-"

She cut him off with laughter. "Hey, I take my job _very_ seriously Jay. We're almost there," Erin pulled into the next left turn and stopped the car. She had to reach across him to retrieve the property's keys from the glove box. "It's this one."

Jay got out of the car after her, following a step behind as she led him up the path. Erin paused when they reached the door, signalling for him to look around. The view hadn't been what he'd been paying attention to.

"So this is the front garden," Erin stated the obvious, gesturing towards the view. She used the keys to unlock the door. "Shall we?"

"Lead the way," Jay watched as she stepped through into the hallway. He looked around him this time: in front of him were doors to the other rooms and a spiral stairway.

"This is practically brand new," Erin was back to her professional tone. "There's only been one other tenant before you."

He frowned. "Tenant?"

Erin opened her mouth then clamped it shut. "Right. The last people were renting but the owner said-"

"I don't wanna live in somebody else's place," he interrupted again. His comment was ironic, he realized, given that he was currently living in his brother's place.

Erin held up one of her arms in defence. "As I was _saying_ , the owner might look into selling."

"Okay," Jay wandered around the open space, eyeing the hidden spaces behind the other doors. He had to admit he was impressed. "It's nice."

"Of course it's nice," she agreed, laughing. "This is one of the most sought after areas in the city," she informed him.

Jay wasn't surprised. From what he could see, there were four spacious rooms on the ground floor. The spiral staircase, when he looked up, let to another four doors.

"Can I?" he gestured to the upper level and started up the stairs when she nodded. The first door Jay opened looked like the master bedroom. An entire wall was taken up by the closet, another by a glass window.

He walked further into the room. There was a small bathroom concealed behind the bedroom door: you couldn't see it until you were in the room. Jay wandered over to the window, leaned against the sill. Erin had been right about the view: the one from this room led into the rear garden. Beyond that, he could make out the pier.

"I told you it was pretty," Erin appeared at the doorway, her arms folded across the front of her shirt. "What are you thinking?" she queried.

"I can't disagree with that," Jay flipped his stance to look at her, resting his back against the window. "I can't just put an offer on something because of the view," he admitted.

She giggled in reply. "Damn I thought that would work," she teased. Erin moved away from the door, joining him by the bedroom window. "I appreciate it when my clients are honest with me, Jay." One of her hands gently touched against his upper arm. "Tell me the truth, could you see yourself living here?"

 _Could he?_ Jay thought about her question. There was no denying it was an attractive house. If he moved in, there wouldn't be much work to do on it. He could probably move in within…

And yet, it didn't give him any particular 'wow' factor. He would probably be spending the rest of his life in the house he chose. Plus, this was only the first property Erin had brought him to see: it would be a reckless decision to pick this and not see other offers. He had to see what else was on the market.

But perhaps the most selfish reason of all- if he chose this place- was that it cut short time he could spend with his realtor. With Erin herself. She'd end up leaving his life just as quickly as she'd entered it. That wasn't something he was down for, even if it meant they saw each other for an hour a week.

She was the first girl he'd even paid attention to since Jasmine.

Jay laughed, realizing he was doing it again: losing track of his thoughts instead of continuing the conversation. She was looking in his direction, waiting on a reply.

"No," he eventually answered. "Actually, I don't think I can."

Erin gave him a look that suggested she'd been expecting that answer. "Any particular reason?"

Jay swung his arms by his sides. He turned back to the window so they were both looking out of it. "It doesn't speak to me."

"Huh?"

"You know what I mean. You _should_ know what I mean. I want it to be a place that _feels_ like it could be mine."

"Understood," she nodded. "And, double checking, you're the only one that's gonna be moving in, right?" Erin's inquisition was less than professional but she couldn't help asking.

He was confused at first, then a thought ran through him. _Was it a subtle attempt at asking his relationship status?_ Jay swallowed. "Yup, it's just me. What does that have to do with anything-"

"It doesn't," her turn to interrupt. "Sorry, that's none of my business."

"Kind of is," he smiled and took a breath. "A new house is a new start for me. I… caught my ex-girlfriend with another guy…on the night I was gonna propose," he confessed.

Erin's eyes widened. "Oh shit," her hand immediately flew to her mouth after she'd sad it. Remembering she was still representing the company, she vowed not to curse in front of clients, which she had done several times now in front of Jay. Nevertheless, the revelation had shocked her, and something told her Jay wouldn't be the type to report to her boss.

"Shit indeed," he replied in agreement, not phased at her choice of words. "A few of the places your other realtor showed me around reminded me of her, of _Jasmine_ ," he spoke her name through gritted teeth. He was surprised himself at how open he was being with Erin but there was something in him that wanted her to know.

"That's understandable," she replied after a few moments, sympathetically. Her arm hovered at his shoulder for a second before she crossed them again across her breast. "So I'm guessing you kicked her cheating ass out, huh?"

"No," Jay sighed, leaning against the window frame. "I couldn't stay there. I'm on my brother's couch," he laughed and shrugged at the same time.

"Oh," his answer hadn't been the one she'd expected. "And now he wants the couch back?"

Jay smiled. "Now he wants the couch back," he reinforced. Speaking it out loud made the meaning resonate in his mind. _Shit, he couldn't be living on Will's couch forever._

Erin hung her head to one side. It was pretty unusual for her to be so invested in a client. Somehow, the insight into Jay's past made her need to find him somewhere more intense.

"Jeez," she blew out a breath. "That's gotta be-"

"Oh I miss having a bed for sure," Jay joked, recalling the lump on his head from this morning. He was lightening the topic of the conversation. "But I heard you're the best at your job so-"

"Then you heard right," she laughed, proudly. "if you don't like this place, I think I have somewhere else in mind." Erin reached into the file she'd brought with her, licked her index finger to flick through the pages. "I'm pretty tight for the rest of the week, but maybe I could show you it…. Friday?"

Jay nodded, although technically he couldn't promise a meeting. Being a Detective didn't come with a set schedule: anything could happen between now and Friday to prevent his availability. _But_ he thought _she didn't have to know that._

"Friday sounds good," he allowed a smirk to spread across his face. He found it hard to distinguish whether Miss Lindsay actually had another viewing lined up or if it was fabrication to impress him.

Erin lowered her glance to her watch. She hadn't shown Jay the whole house but it was wasted time if he didn't see himself living here. Erin was the first to move towards the door but she felt his eyes on her. "I think we're done here," she turned back towards him. "Where can I drop you off?"

"Molly's again, if that's good with you?" Jay suggested, watching as she nodded. He didn't know if it was common for realtors to transport their clients to different locations or whether she just did it out of courtesy. He didn't want her to feel sorry for him because of what he'd told her.

Jay followed her back into the garden, down the path and into her Jeep. The radio sprung into life as soon as Erin put it into drive.

He was tapping his fingers against the interiors when he remembered.

"Wait," his voice drowned out the song on the radio. "This Friday is the 17th, right?"

Erin kept her eyes on the road but nodded.

"Shoot," Jay made a fist and bashed it comically against his knee. "This Friday is the open day at the District. We got old officers there, families coming and… hey you should come!" He'd suggested it before he could stop himself.

Erin hesitated but prevented it from showing in her face. The majority of her attention was focused on the red light in front of her, causing her to temporarily break.

It would mean involvement with her client outside of work, strictly something she was dead set against. And yet, it would be a social situation and they would be surrounded by other people. If she could persuade Kate to come along with her, it would be less obvious that her desire was to see Jay again.

"Maybe I could do that," Erin said eventually, telling herself secretly that it was a community thing too.

"You should," his feelings were clear, he made no secret of the invitation. "Then maybe we could sneak away to see this other place you wanna show me."

The way he phrased it caused Erin to blush: the thought of 'sneaking' was intriguing. But obviously her client had meant it in terms of her doing her job: showing him somewhere that would be better than the first.

Quicker than either of them would have liked, Erin pulled up in front of the bar. She killed the engine.

Jay unfastened his seatbelt and reached to turn down the radio. It became just a hum in the background of their conversation. "I'll see you Friday," he said it as a statement rather than a question. "I..uh, thanks for the ride," he added.

"Sure," she responded, turning towards him slightly. "I'll…call you about the property."

"I'll look forward to it," he climbed out of the Jeep and started across the street. Jay turned back quickly to wave then disappeared through the door to Molly's.

Erin waited until he was out of sight, running a hand through her lose curls. Half of her wanted to follow him, have a drink herself, but the sensible side of her started the car.

When she reached her apartment block, Erin gathered up her purse and paperwork, juggling with it as she unlocked the door with her key.

"Kate?" It was quiet at home, leading Erin to believe her roommate wasn't in. She'd seen Kate this morning but, like most weekdays, her roommate hadn't been full of conversation.

"I'm in the kitchen!" her friend's voice travelled down the hallway.

Erin dumped her paperwork on the small table beside the door, kicked off her shoes and walked along to the kitchen. She found Kate sitting on a stool at the kitchen island counter, surrounded by jewels and buttons, opals and strings. Apparently she'd decided to work from home.

"What do you think of this?" Kate held up one of her creations to Erin.

Erin dropped her purse on the counter. She took the makeshift necklace from Kate and held it against her neck. "It's great," she grinned. "In fact, I could just keep this one-"

"No you don't," Kate reached to grab it back, putting it back in the box with the rest of what she'd made. "I'm not done with that. Anyway, not to sound like the nagging roommate or anything," she narrowed her eyes at Erin. "This is the second time running that you're in later than usual. Meetings with clients don't tend to stretch _this_ long. Any particular reason?" she wiggled her eyebrows.

Erin ignored her at first, walking to the refrigerator and pulling free a bottle of wine. She poured two glasses and sat with them both on the vacant stool next to Kate. "Oh don't start," Erin joked, pushing one of the drinks in Kate's direction. "The meeting with my last client overran."

"Mhm," Kate rolled her eyes. "And which client would that be?"

Erin shook her head. She'd mentioned Jay to her friend before although couldn't recall how much she'd disclosed about him. That didn't matter though: Kate could read her like a book.

"You just want me to say it, don't you?" Erin replied before taking a gulp of her wine. "It was Jay."

"Oh, _Jay,"_ Kate teased.

"Shut up," Erin fought against it but her facial expression betrayed her. No matter how hard she clamped her teeth into the side of her mouth, she couldn't prevent it from spreading into a grin.

"Ooh, I've never seen you this giddy or defensive before," her roommate continued taunting. "Well why don't you-"

"I can't," Erin protested, guessing Kate was about to suggest making a move or something. "You know I can't get involved with clients."

Kate scoffed. "That's bullshit and you know it. That's just your own stupid rule."

"Whatever, Kate," Erin took her empty glass to the dish-washer. She leaned against it, biting her bottom lip. "Actually speaking of-"

Kate spun quickly in anticipation. Her eyes widened and she gestured for Erin to continue.

"He's invited us to an open day at the Police Station on Friday-"

"Us?" Kate shook her head as though she was processing new information. "And hold up, he's a cop?"

Erin nodded: she knew Kate didn't know that because she'd only just found out herself. "Please tell me you're free, I'm not going alone."

"Dan's back on Friday," Kate watched as Erin's face dropped. "…but not until late on," she smirked.

"Oh perfect," Erin tried to sound casual, an attempt to show Kate she wasn't _desperate_ to go to the place Jay worked. "It's a community thing, we'd only have to stay for an hour or something-"

"Liar," Kate stood up to get rid of her own glass. "Don't feed me the 'community thing' bullshit babe. That's not the reason you wanna go to this thing," she wiggled a finger in Erin's face.

"I hate you," Erin pulled Kate's finger away. She knew Kate was enjoying this: considering she hadn't shown interest for anybody like this in a long time.

"You love me," her friend countered, blinking her eyes in an innocent fashion. She reached into one of their cupboards, rummaging.

Erin moved out of her way. "What are you doing?"

Kate reappeared, armed with a pasta dish. She twisted her face. "I was gonna be good and go to the gym but I've got a better idea," she put down the dish and walked to the refrigerator. "I'm gonna cook our dinner and _you're_ gonna tell me all about this client of yours."

 **Please Review!**


	5. A Potential Property

The bonus of being so good at her job meant Erin could often cut out early, have a free afternoon. Especially if she said the right thing to Mitch: her boss was always eager to please her. _Though_ she thought _that should be the opposite way around._ It should be _her_ aiming to please her boss.

Erin laughed to herself and didn't dwell on the thought. Being pretty good at the realtor thing meant she did that on the daily.

She bit down on her lip and pushed herself up from the swivel chair in her office. Mitch's office was the only one bigger than her own. She walked the distance to his work space and tapped a knuckle against the door.

"Come in."

Erin pushed the door open, wedging its position to prevent it from shutting. Sometimes she was wary of being in Mitch's office when it was only the two of them. So far, his advances had only been in word form but still…

"Erin!" Mitch spoke with enthusiasm when he realized it was her. He relaxed back in his chair, his hands crossed behind his head. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

She took it upon herself to walk further into the room. Erin didn't sit in the vacant seat though- Mitch was motioning for her to occupy it. But she wasn't planning on staying.

"I just thought I'd let you know I'm heading out-" Erin looked at him, expecting some kind of reaction. Like he'd tell her to stay, or surprise her with another client.

Instead, he was inquisitive. "Yeah? And where are you going?"

"I have a client meeting this afternoon," it wasn't exactly a lie.

Mitch relaxed his arms, brought them to rest on his desk. "Alright," knowing Erin didn't plan on prolonging the conversation, he turned his attention back to his computer screen. "Get your ass outta my office then," he said, dismissing her. "I'll see you Monday."

Erin half-waved a reply and walked back to her office. Nancy was on her way back from the break room, holding a steaming cup. She looked up as Erin crossed paths with her. "Oh, hey!"

"How's it going?" Erin smiled. "How are you holding up finding a place for the Skelling-Newton's?" she thought back to the large family she'd given Nancy in exchange for Jay.

"It's going great actually!" Nancy replied. "I took them to see that new place that came up on fifth? It was a little over their spending budget but I think they might go for it."

"Oh, awesome," Erin said, and meant it. Nancy came from a relatively large family herself and she knew a lot more about kids than Erin did.

"And what about you?" Nancy asked, taking a sip of her coffee. "I hope you're having better luck with Mr Halstead?"

"I think we're making progress," Erin laughed. She could tell from Nancy's face that her facial expression gave her something more.

Nancy narrowed her eyes, the corners of her mouth upturning. "Yeah?" she nudged Erin's shoulder. "What kind of progress would that be?"

"Oh stop it," Erin replied, shaking her head. "You're worse than my roommate."

Nancy held up a hand in defence. "Hey you know I'm only joking. Where are you going anyway?"

"I'm heading over to the Police District. They have this kinda family open day thing," Erin offered innocently, like she was only half interested in the matter.

Nancy shook her head. "You know, sometimes I hate that you're the favorite. I don't think Mitch would _ever_ let me cut out early," she winked and adjusted her position. "Anyway, some of us have work to do. Have fun!"

After she'd looked after Nancy, making her way back to her own workspace, Erin retreated into her office to shut everything off for the weekend. She picked up her purse and headed for the car park. When she got home, Erin found Kate in the kitchen again. Her creations were once more taking up the majority of the space on the dining table.

"Hey hey," she looked up when she heard Erin's footsteps. Then she suddenly started clearing up her clutter. "So what time are we heading to this thing?"

Erin turned her wrist to see her watch. "I was thinking maybe half an hour? I just have to get changed real quick," she added.

Kate nodded her agreement and finished cleaning up her stuff. "Sounds good," she licked her lower lip, suppressing a teasing grin. "You're not gonna have a fight with your closet are you? Trying to decide what to wear for this client of yours?"

"Oh don't even…" Erin trailed off as she made for the hallway, back towards her bedroom. She threw off her pant suit, aiming both parts of it into the laundry basket. Then she walked into her bathroom, turning on the shower. Erin clipped up her lose curls, not wanting to let the water hit them. Her hair had only been washed a few hours ago, it didn't need washing again.

When she'd washed away her work day, Erin grabbed the towel that lived on the hook of the bathroom door. Her reflection in the mirror grabbed her attention; her complexion was always the best when she was fresh out of the shower.

Or perhaps it was because she felt more relaxed; away from the office and from responsibility.

 _Was that really the case though?_ she pondered to herself as she reached for her toothbrush. _Was she actually feeling more relaxed?_

There was a minute queasiness in her belly that told her _no._ It was about to be the first meeting with Jay outside of work. Or rather, inside of his.

Erin's heart thumped as he popped into her thoughts. She didn't know what to expect- seeing him outside of her realtor role. He would be the one in his comfort zone, not her.

She walked back through to her bedroom, her eyes falling upon her closet. Kate was right: she probably was gonna have a fight with her closet. It was easy when it came to choosing work clothes because Erin had a ton of work suits. And she practically lived in those. It was when it came to dressing for other occasions that she was especially thankful for her roommate.

"Kate?" it was a few seconds before she heard her friend's footfall along the hallway carpet. She popped her head around Erin's bedroom door. "Help?"

Kate shuffled into the room, laughing. She threw open Erin's closet, ruffling through what was hanging there. She pulled out a blue sundress. "What about this? It's cute."

Erin sat on the edge of her bed and pulled a face. "I can't wear that! I have to show him around a property later-"

"So?"

"So," Erin continued. "It's a party dress, not exactly something I can go to work in," she shrugged.

Kate rolled her eyes. "Oh, come _on_ Er. It's not like showing somebody around a property is gonna be a problem if you're wearing a _dress_. Besides, I know you look hot in it so-"

"Stop it," Erin cut in. Though, if she was honest, the dress idea was growing on her. Maybe she could pair it with a cute jacket so she wasn't baring all her flesh. And- she relished at the thought- she could wear sneakers too. Oh, the comfort, instead of the heels that were on her feet Monday through Friday. "Okay, gimme," she reached to grab it from Kate.

A small squeal escaped her roommate before she leaned against Erin's door. "Well I guess that didn't take much persuasion," she smirked, leaving Erin to get ready. "Are we taking your car or mine?"

"Oh shoot," Erin thought for a minute, remembering she would have to leave the District in a different direction. "I have a viewing with Jay at 5:30. But we'll be back from this open thing before that." It was bound to be busy: the officers would be interacting with so many people. "So, we could go in mine," she offered.

Kate nodded. "Okay, cool, cause mine's low on gas," she laughed, heading back for the kitchen. ""I'm ready when you are!"

Erin slipped the dress over her head and reached for shoes from underneath her closet. She ran back into the bathroom and applied some make-up: more than she usually wore for work but still fairly natural. A touch of mascara and some shiny gloss. She unclipped her hair and her curls sprung free. They'd dropped so her hair looked longer.

Her favorite jacket hung on the back of her bedroom door. She reached for it, and her purse, closing the bedroom door behind her.

"Ready?" she made it into the kitchen.

"Yeah," Kate had poured herself a lemonade and she drained the cup. She threw the empty glass onto the counter and turned to Erin. Her eyes settled on the dress and she smirked. "Yeah," she glanced Erin's way. "You look okay."

"Wow, thanks," Erin pretended not to care. "Let's go."

* * *

Jay stood, hands on hips, in the middle of the reception area of the District. He couldn't take credit for the organization of the open day, but he was still pretty proud of how it had turned out.

There were _way_ more people there than he'd been expecting. Which sure was a good thing, the place was buzzing. He'd already chatted to people form every single age category.

He'd dressed in his patrol uniform to make it fun for the kids. To also make sure they weren't scared of seeing somebody in uniform. A small group of them walked over to him, distracting his attention.

Jay bent to their level. "Hey!" his tone was friendly. Five chubby faces smiled and a few waved back at him. "Has anybody been here before?" They shook their heads. "That's good I suppose," he said under his breath.

He turned his attention to a small boy with blond hair standing at the front. His mouth was wide open, gawping at the scene. ""What's your name, buddy?"

"Jack."

"Hi Jack," Jay fake saluted. "I'm Jay. You like this place, huh?"

The boy nodded, then pointed at Jay's chest. "What's that?" he asked inquisitively.

Jay's hand tapped against the star. "That's my police badge. I gotta wear that all day so people know I can help them."

"Can I touch it?"

"I can do better than that," Jay reached into his pocket, pulling out stickers in the shape of his badge. "You can all have your own!"

"Awesome!"

"Cool!"

"Thanks, Mr!"

Jay laughed and ran a hand through his hair. "Does anybody have any questions for me?" he asked, immediately regretting it. _Kids could say anything._

A hand shot up that belonged to a girl at the back, Jay could see the pink bow she wore in her hair. "Mr, do you have a gun?"

Jay bit his lip. "I do," there was a collective gasp as the words left his mouth. "I have to carry it so I can protect people like you from the bad guys," he tried to reassure them.

"Did anybody ever try to shoot at you?" another child's question came from the front.

"Sometimes," he was surprised at how open he was being with the children. His audience went quiet, but Jay gestured towards the vest he wore on top of his blue shirt. "But you see this? It's my bulletproof vest. So when the bad guys try to hurt me, this is what protects me." He watched as the faces relaxed a little.

"Did it hurt?" Another voice was thrown into the conversation whilst Jay's attention was still on his younger audience. He turned his attention to his left to find Erin, grinning in his direction. She gave a small wave.

Jay blinked- making sure it was actually her- before rising back up to standing position. "It did," he answered but didn't yet shift over to her. He returned her grin then averted his eyes back to the children. "Hey, I think if you guys go over there, Ruzek might have some snacks!"

They'd already begun to disperse as Jay walked over to her.

Erin's face dropped a little. "Oh, I didn't mean to interrupt-"

"You didn't," Jay laughed, leaning against the desk they stood beside. "There's only so much you can say to kids about this job," he laughed. "I'm told I have to spend a fair amount of time with all the guests here," he added, jokingly.

"I guess that's okay then," she laughed too. "How often do you wear uniform?"

Jay realized he'd been a plain clothed officer on their previous encounters. "Only when I work the overtime," he said. "But I guess I'm easy to spot in it when I'm at things like this."

"True," Erin agreed, her glance drifting around the lobby. Kate had left her to go use the bathroom but she was heading back in their direction, wiggling her eyebrows at Erin when she saw who she was standing with.

"Kate," Erin spoke first, ignoring her friend's sneaky facial expression. "This is Jay. Jay, this is my roommate."

"Nice to meet you," Jay stuck out a hand politely.

"And you," Kate returned his gesture. "I've heard a lot about you-"

Erin's eyes widened and she thumped a foot on top of Kate's. She opened her mouth to say something then clamped it shut again, feeling her cheeks flush. She could remember pretty well how much she'd said about Jay the other night when Kate asked her.

"Oh?" Jay's eyebrows shot up and he looked towards Erin but didn't comment further.

""Yeah, anyway," Kate kept the tone casual. "Did I hear snacks? Cause I could eat."

"That way," Jay pointed towards the vending machines and the temporary table set with candy.

They watched her run off in search of food, Erin laughing- knowing that where there was food, there was Kate. But she also thought it was one of Kate's tactics, leaving her alone with the Detective.

Jay was looking at her again- she looked different outside of her usual pant suit. Even the casual look though made her look _hot_. He was trying with everything in him not to look at the skin on show- more than he could see when he'd seen her in her work stuff.

"So," he said next. "Would you like the grand tour?"

"I'd love one," Erin replied enthusiastically. It was an honest answer also, _when would she ever get the opportunity to snoop around a cop station?_ Erin was intrigued- both about her client and his place of work.

"I'll show you the bullpen first," Jay led them towards the stairs. He keyed his own passcode into the system so it unlocked. He gestured for Erin to walk through first, hoping they could make it to the hidden upstairs before anybody noticed. "My desk is that one," he laughed.

Erin walked to where he'd pointed, the back right desk furthest from her. She ran an index finger along his work surface. "It's nice."

He scoffed. "Not the word I'd use," he walked the length of the room to join her. "I don't spend too much time in here," Jay admitted. "I prefer to be out doing the physical stuff."

She turned towards him. "Like fighting the bad guys?" she asked childishly, echoing the question of the children downstairs.

Jay narrowed his eyes briefly. "And just how much of that conversation did you hear?"

"Enough," she teased, wandering the circumference of his work space. She was quiet as she looked at the desks around his. It wasn't all dissimilar to her own office, in that the central furniture was the desk. "What does a Detective keep at his desk?" she asked aloud.

Jay raised his eyebrows, moving to open his first drawer. The immediate rustling of candy wrappers was evident. "Probably not as exciting as you thought," he pulled out his usual guilty pleasure. "First it's my secret- uh, not so secret candy stash," he stretched his mouth in an ' _oops'_ fashion. He pulled one free from the packet before offering them to Erin.

She accepted some MnMs from his bag. Erin pulled a finger along her lips. "Your secret's safe with me," she joked.

He laughed a response. "Much appreciated," he kept up with the joke. "Second drawer is where it gets interesting," he said cryptically. Jay looked over at her, watching a frown of anticipation furrow her brow. Her eyes widened when she caught sight of his weapon and handcuffs- neither of which she'd actually seen before in the flesh. Nothing much left her mouth save an _Oh!_ sound that made Jay laugh.

"It's not where I usually keep them," he told her. "I knew there'd be kids here today so I didn't wanna keep them in the locker room."

Erin leaned against somebody else's desk. "And here I was thinking the tour was exclusive-"

"This one is," Jay put his weapons where he'd hidden them and locked the drawer. He could feel the small perspiration patches forming underneath his shirt. It wasn't surprising given the combination of weather outside, the fact that he was still donning his bulletproof vest … and his current company. That didn't do anything for his current body temperature.

"I'll show you it if you like," Jay ran a hand through his hair. "The locker room, I mean. It's nothing special but it gives me a chance to drop off this," he gestured to the black protection vest across his chest. "Then I can show you the good stuff."

It caught her attention. "The good stuff?"

He gave her a nod, then a smirk. "Interrogation rooms. Holding cells."

Erin stopped herself from sounding too enthusiastic. "Are you allowed to do that?" Something told her the Detective was breeching his conduct.

Jay purposefully averted his gaze away from her. "Maybe….not strictly," he added.

She laughed- though it came out more like a nervous breath- and folded her arms across her chest.

"It's fine," he continued, realizing her apprehension. "I can always feed the boss some bullshit reason why we're down there," he said. "It's not like they'll notice anyway, did you see how busy it was down there?"

She had done. Erin had arrived with Kate, the first sign was that she couldn't find a parking space. She'd luckily remembered dropping Jay at the bar Molly's so she'd left the car by there.

She'd found him, deep in conversation with a group of first graders. They'd been staring at him in awe- and apparently so had she, because Kate interrupted, teasing. _I knew you'd be looking for him right away_ she'd said. _Where do you think the bathroom is in this place? I really need to pee._

Her client had looked completely at home, talking so openly about his job with a bunch of kids. She'd stayed quiet for as long as possible until asking her own question.

Jay's movement towards the stairs brought her back to the present. "Let's go."

She followed him back downstairs and they somehow avoided the public gaze as Jay led the way underground.

Erin felt a chill as they reached the end of the stairs. A shiver ran through her as they temporarily stopped at the locker room. She stood at the doorway, watching as Jay pulled his vest from his chest and hung it in his locker. Then he rolled up his shirt sleeves, appearing now more casual than professional.

He slammed his locker closed. "The Interrogation room is this way," he pointed left.

"So, you can stand in here, watching your Sarge go off on them and they can't see you?" Erin was standing behind the one-way window, the one that looked like a mirror to any criminals being questioned.

"Yup," he told her, smiling at the notion that she found it so interesting. He probably shouldn't have brought her in here but it was worth getting into trouble for. Jay watched her, amused, leaning against the wall. It kinda scared him, just how honest he was being on this tour. Telling her all the secrets of the job without caring.

He brought several knuckles to tap against the glass. "And most of the time, I'm god damn glad it's shatterproof," he continued and Erin spun towards him. "…because if you saw half the jackasses we get in here," Jay shook his head. He could recall several times he pictured himself breaking through the glass and lunging for the suspect on the other side. It was what he always wanted to do to those that deserved it.

"I can imagine," Erin said quietly. She touched her own fingertips against the window. She could tell by his face that he was reminiscing about something, his eyebrows low like he was deep in thought. The last thing Erin wanted was for the mood to drop, considering how cheery he'd been before.

Jay didn't dwell on that mood though, instead heading towards the door. "I think the last thing to show you is the cells," a small smirk curved his mouth. When he looked towards her, he sensed her apprehension. "Relax, there's nobody in them," he laughed. Jay walked out of the small box room, holding out an arm to point her in the right direction.

It shocked her a little just how _empty_ the cell space was: there was literally just a box cage.

"What even goes down in here?" she asked, not sure she really wanted to know.

"We leave them in there to stew sometimes," he replied. "It's often good to watch them squirm."

"You actually lock them in here?" Erin approached the cages. To her, it looked like something from a movie. She'd never seen anything like it but then, she wasn't familiar with the territory.

"Uh, yeah," Jay laughed. "I can show you if you-"

"I'm good," she replied. Her eyes darted around the room. Then she checked her watch. "Holy crap!" her eyes widened at the time. "It's 4:30 already," she told him, feeling guilty that she'd stolen his afternoon.

"So it is," Jay's gaze flicked to his own wrist. "Time flies when you're having fun, huh?" he joked.

"I guess it does," she agreed. "Listen, if you wanna rearrange this viewing-"

He looked up, confused. "Why would I do that?"

"Because it's your open day," she pointed a finger upstairs. ""There's people waiting for you."

Jay licked his upper lip, an amused sound escaping his throat. "And have you seen anybody looking for me?" he asked her. "What time is the viewing?"

"It's scheduled for just after 5," Erin said professionally. The only professional thing she'd said all day. "There's nobody in it though," she revealed. "So we could go anytime really."

"Great," Jay breathed out. "Can we go now then?"

"Sure," she nodded, following him towards the stairs. "Oh… I told Kate I'd give her a ride home."

They scanned the reception area, Jay's eyes falling on Erin's roommate having a conversation with Ruzek. "She's over there," he pointed. Jay watched her as she walked over to her friend, continued watching as they had a short conversation- Kate seemed to be introducing Erin to her new friend- before they came back over to him.

"I just need to grab my stuff," he said, jogging away towards the locker room.

Kate turned towards Erin. "Yeah, and where have _you_ been?"

There was no point in Erin lying. "I got a tour of this place," she said.

Kate scoffed. "For two hours? _Okay_ ," she was sceptical, Erin could tell. "Are we heading home?"

Erin realized Kate's excitement had grown and she remembered why: Dan, her boyfriend, would be back tonight. Something inside her told her to be thankful their bedrooms were at separate ends of the penthouse. "I'll drop you home, yeah," Erin smiled, knowing Kate would have something to say about her next sentence. "I have a house viewing with Jay."

Kate opened her mouth to respond with something witty or sarcastic but watched instead as Jay approached the other side of Erin.

"I hope Ruzek didn't talk your ear off," he directed towards Erin's roommate as they headed around the corner to Erin's Jeep.

"He's funny," Kate replied. "I also like your desk Sergeant."

"Platt," he nodded. Jay felt obliged to take a back seat but Kate offered different. "Uh, thanks," he sat on the passenger side next to Erin.

"What time is Dan back?" Erin changed the conversation. She wanted to steer it somewhere away from Jay's work, something Kate could tease her about.

The change of topic enhanced Kate's mood. "I think he gets back in like an hour," she replied and stuck her head through to the front of the car. "It's okay if he stays tonight, right?" she pleaded.

"Of course," Erin laughed, her eyes still on the road. "I'll probably be back around then." She pulled up just to the right of their block, leaving Kate to walk a bit. Erin prayed Kate wasn't gonna say anything, but she didn't want to reveal exactly where she lived to her client. Even after the crazy flirty jokes they'd shared this afternoon.

"I'll catch you later," Kate opened the rear door to exit. "It was nice to meet you, Jay."

"Yeah, you too," he waved, though didn't see why door she headed for because Erin quickly put the car in drive. He hummed in time with the song on the radio whilst Erin continued their route. "Where are we going?"

Erin tapped against the wheel. "Here."

Jay looked out to his right. He wasn't familiar with the neighborhood but that wasn't unusual: it didn't look like the type that needed any police presence.

She noticed the way he was looking around him. If she was proud of the last house she'd shown Jay, she deserved a promotion or something for landing a viewing at this one. Erin was jealous she didn't reside in this street herself.

"Park Drive," she said proudly as they both got out of her Jeep. Erin didn't reveal too much about the property yet but could already tell from the look on Jay's face that he was impressed. Back in her professional role, Erin had done her research. She led him up the path towards the front entrance.

"The newest building on this block," she half boasted. "I think this could be what you're looking for," she added, secretly hoping he liked her choice.

Erin pulled the keys from her purse and invited him over the threshold. When the house had appeared in the inbox of her new properties, she knew immediately she had to snag it and sell it before her other work colleagues. And she had _just_ the client left that she could potentially pair it with…

 _It was one of the things her client wanted, wasn't it?_ A pretty modern house that nobody had lived in yet.

Jay's eyes fell upon the lower half of the house. It was all open plan and, given the fact there was no furniture, it was evident how big the place was. The diner-kitchen-lounge occupied the biggest space. Erin followed his aimless wandering, staying behind in his shadow so he could take in what was in front of him.

She was quiet for a moment before she spoke to him. "It's one big room right now but I'm guessing you could put up more walls if it was necessary," Erin came to a halt at the opposite side of the room, the one taken up by a floor to ceiling window.

"This is pretty awesome," Jay nodded and he moved to join her as she viewed the garden. "I don't think I'd change it."

"It is pretty nice, huh," Erin watched as he nodded again. "I figured something like this…you could do anything you want with," she said.

"Very true," Jay agreed, continuing to look around the space. "Is there a downstairs bathroom?"

Erin nodded and curled a finger, beckoning him to follow. The images she had on her computer screen told her the bathroom was already installed. She found the door nearer the hallway and pulled it open. Once she'd found the light cord and pulled it, the tiled room illuminated.

"Holy shit," the two words came from her left shoulder, where her client stood. She fully understood his reaction.

The base of the house was bare although the bathroom had been fully installed. White porcelain furniture including a bath the size of a hot tub.

"Nice," was his next comment, when he clocked eyes on that particular feature.

"I'll say," she said. The pictures hadn't done this place justice. "Would you like to see the upstairs?"

Jay exhaled a breath. "I think so," he laughed.

Erin backed out of the room, turning quickly- too quickly- her chest colliding into his with a thud. "Oh!"

" _Sorry,_ " she said, flustered, at the same time the word left his lips.

A shy smirk pulled up the corners of his mouth before Jay turned his back to her and started up the stairs. Erin quickly rearranged her hair to fall forwards over her dress and chewed on her lip. She tugged the front of her dress up, slightly embarrassed. When she got to the sixth step, Jay hung over the railing.

"I'm impressed," his smirk had grown into a grin.

Erin had picked the property based on what the downstairs looked like, she hadn't seen the upper level yet. But she had to act like she knew the place so couldn't let the surprise show on her face.

It took a lot of difficulty. The upper level was fairly open plan too, although the bedrooms were closed off. It was the master bedroom that Jay had gone into first. He'd noticed the en-suite and walk-in closet.

"Okay, this could work," he laughed, checking out the space behind the door.

Erin stood on the top stair, allowing him to explore the other rooms. Aside from the main suite, there were two smaller bedrooms, a room that resembled an office and another large bathroom. In a sense, _way_ more space than her client needed for himself.

"So?" Erin folded her arms on her chest. "First impressions are good?"

"Good?" Jay scoffed, his head appearing around the door of one of the smaller rooms he'd entered. "This place is incredible!" He directed a smile her way. "Did you see the view from this place?"

Erin followed him back into the room, curious. Jay's palms were open, resting against his biceps. He was looking out of the window.

"You'd have a hell of a view," Erin laughed, looking herself into the rear garden. It took up just as much space as the house did, the sea of green stretching as far as she could see.

"I know," he replied quietly, dividing his attention between the garden and Erin. A minute late, it was all on her. "Okay," he laughed. "Hit me with the details."

Erin nodded. She hadn't brought the file with her- forgetting it in her rush to get ready for the open day- but several details about this place were etched in her memory.

"This place is ready as early as tomorrow. There's a parking garage out front, there's a basement and a small attic. It's on the market for just under $2 mill-"

"I want it."

Her eyes darted to meet his. Hers narrowed, wondering whether he was being serious. "This is only the second place you've seen-"

"Then you must be good at your job," he complimented. "I want it."

His second reply sounded genuine. Erin nodded, _who wouldn't fall in love with this place?_ It was in the best part of town, a beautiful attraction.

She clasped her hands together: happy, elated even, that she'd found him somewhere to live and yet…apprehensive because she didn't know what that meant. Or rather, she did but she didn't want to think about it. Her time with him could be over abruptly.

"I'll have to get the paperwork drawn up for you," Erin said. "You'd have to visit the office to sign it, if that's okay?"

"Of course," Jay replied and he took a step towards her to close the gap between them. Erin took in a sharp breath as he did so. He spun around though, to look at his surroundings again. "So what happens now?"

"I can't get the papers and stuff until Monday," she shrugged. "So I guess if we're done at this place, I could drop you somewhere?"

Jay scoffed. "I guess my brother's place," he laughed.

Back in the car, he continued their conversation. "I gotta thank you for coming today, by the way. I…uh…it makes the District look good," he chuckled.

"Of course," she smiled in reply.

"I did text you," Jay said suddenly. "To remind you about it, in case you'd forgotten. I figured, when you didn't reply-"

"Wait, what? You did?"

"Yeah. This morning."

Erin frowned. "Oh!" she slammed a palm against the wheel. "It will have been my work cell," she realized. "…which I've left at the office."

"That makes sense," it was no secret his mood lifted. "I guess you weren't ignoring me then?" he joked.

"I wasn't ignoring you," Erin repeated, coming to a slow stop at the address Jay had provided her with.

"Good to know," he moved to loosen his seatbelt, his fingertips brushing against the back of her hand. "I'll call into your office say, Monday afternoon?"

"Yes," she nodded. Erin waved away her client, watching as he headed towards his temporary home. On her drive back to her own place, it was only one notion that clouded her thoughts.

 _Maybe, just maybe, it was time to break her work client rule._

 **Please Review!**


	6. An Extra Deal

"No, no, no!" Kate's open palm slammed against the arm of the couch.

Erin crashed down in the vacant cushion beside her roommate, startled at her sudden outburst. "What?"

"You're not supposed to be back here already! What happened with Jay?"

Erin pulled a face. "What do you mean? I showed him the house, he loved it and then I dropped him back home. I don't get what you're-"

"But you like him, I know you do! Don't tell me you've spent all day flirting with him and done nothing about it?" Kate's attention had fully turned to her friend, rather than a continued attempt to watch TV at the same time.

"I…" Erin didn't quite know what to say. "He's a client," she shrugged.

"Oh you can _stop_ with that bullshit," Kate slapped Erin's forearm jokingly. She raised her eyebrows. "Plus, didn't you just tell me you found him a place? He's not gonna be a client by this time next week…"

Erin gulped. She knew what Kate was saying was true, though she realized it more as it was said aloud. Jay was putting an offer on this place and- if he was successful- that would be her realtor role over.

Her silence made Kate continue the conversation on her own. "Stop trying to talk yourself out of it," her tone was stern and she crossed her arms over her chest, side-eyeing Erin.

"I didn't say anything!" Erin laughed in protest.

"Yeah, but you're thinking it. _Screw_ your work client rule, it's not like you're still gonna be his realtor when he's moved in-"

"Okay," Erin nodded, knowing that Kate would never let up until she agreed. "I'll think about it," she said, although it had already been on her mind for all of the drive home. It was only then that Erin remembered Kate was expecting company tonight. "Wait, where's Dan?" she asked, intentionally changing the subject.

"Oh," the chirpy look disappeared from Kate's face. "He's in bed."

"Without you?" Erin joked. "Not the reunion I thought you'd have…"

"Tell me about it," Kate rolled her eyes. "I think he's picked up something whilst he's been away," she stuck out her tongue. "…and I don't want to catch it."

"Got it," Erin pulled her feet beneath her in a more comfortable position.

"Enough of that," Kate laughed, not wanting to dwell on the subject of her sick boyfriend. If she was honest, it was probably a hangover or something. "What are you up to this weekend?"

"Nothing interesting," Erin said truthfully. "I'm going running in the morning and then I might go shopping. What about you?"

"Mind if I come?" Kate asked.

"Duh," Erin replied. "I need your opinion on the wardrobe I plan on buying."

Kate chuckled. "Flattery won't get you anywhere," she patted both hands against her stomach. "But I meant, can I come with you on the run?"

Erin stared at her for a second. She was used to her morning workout routine being her alone time. But one run with Kate wouldn't be a problem. "Sure," she offered.

She regretted her decision when it came to the next morning. Erin glanced at her watch, it told her the time was 8:30. On her usual Saturday, she'd be halfway to the park by now. Still, here she was in the hallway waiting for Kate to emerge from the bathroom.

"Okay, ready!" After what felt like an hour to Erin, Kate appeared in front of her. Apart from the sneakers, Kate had dressed in exercise stuff she'd raided from Erin's closet. Erin had expected it: she couldn't remember the last time she'd seen her friend in workout attire.

"Let's go then," Erin said, enthusiastically. She was still confused as to why Kate wanted to come with her instead of making plans with her boyfriend. Maybe he'd done something to piss her off. She giggled quietly to herself: she'd _hate_ to be Dan right now.

Being the most active of the pair, Erin was concerned she'd lose Kate on route to the park. But, as they approached the greenery, her roommate was still keeping up pace.

"So," she started off a conversation, breaking the quiet. "What happened with you and Dan?"

"Oh it's nothing," Kate puffed, slowing her pace slightly. "I know a Dan hangover when I see one. I'm just making him pay for the shit he pulled last night."

"Well if you're sure," Erin started to reply. Kate was not only a roomie but a friend too. And Erin didn't like seeing her upset. Thankfully this time, she seemed in the mood to take revenge on her boyfriend. She let out something that resembled a laugh, combined with a labored breath. "At least this way you can-"

"Fuck!" the profanity came from behind her, at the same time she heard a crack then a thud as Kate crashed into a heap on the floor. "My ankle!"

Erin turned quickly, her eyes widening as she saw her friend, her hands on the ground and one leg sticking out at an uncomfortable angle. "What happened?"

"I think my ankle is broken," Kate winced, her face scrunched into several creases.

"What did you do?" Erin bent to her level, unable to take her eyes away from Kate's leg. The bone just above where her sneaker was protruded from the skin. "You were right behind me, what-"

"Erin!" Kate said through gritted teeth. "Help me up," it wasn't a question so Erin immediately moved to pull Kate to stand. Her roommate balanced her weight between her good leg and Erin, who held a firm grip beneath Kate's arm.

"Should I call 911?"

"No," Kate attempted to laugh through the pain. "I attempt to be active and _this_ is what I get? It's fine, I'll rest with an ice pack," she insisted.

Erin dreaded to think what the two of them looked like, hobbling back to their apartment. Luckily- if there was a lucky way to look at the situation- Kate had fallen at the side of the park closest to home, but it took longer to get there with added injury.

By the time they'd reached their own block though, Kate was still grimacing with the pain. Erin glanced down: her friend's ankle had more than doubled in size.

"Oh my God!" Erin exclaimed, drawing attention to it. "Wait here," she left Kate leaning against her Jeep. She unlocked the apartment door in a swift move and located her key fob in the familiar place she kept it: hanging in the hallway. "We're going to the Emergency Room," she said to Kate when she was back outside.

"You don't need to do that," Kate tried to convince her. "I'm fine."

Erin read Kate's face: the gritted teeth, creased brow and loss of color in her cheeks told her different. Kate _wasn't_ fine. "Get in the car," Erin realized she sounded like a Mom or something- which wasn't usually the case. But the swelling on Kate's lower limb definitely needed medical attention.

She drove quickly- probably too quickly- the few miles to Med. Once she'd found a vacant parking space, Erin held the weight of both of them as they made for the entrance. Erin sat Kate in the waiting area, grabbing the attention of the desk nurse. After she'd written down the relevant information they needed about Kate, Erin sat beside her friend.

Kate was quiet.

"How are you feeling?" Erin asked.

Kate shrugged. "Are there any vendy's in here? I could kill for some water or something."

Erin smiled: she was glad Kate still had her sense of humor. "I don't think you need to be killing anybody," she said, getting up from the chair. "I'll see if they have a water faucet." She wasn't familiar with Med, meaning she didn't even know if there were anywhere _near_ a drinks machine.

When she'd found one, Erin filled the plastic cups provided with water-one for herself too- before making her way back to Kate. She found her accompanied by a member of medical staff, a man with dark auburn hair dressed in maroon hospital scrubs.

They seemed deep in conversation so Erin sauntered to the side and sat with her, pushing a cup of water into her hand. It was only when the Doctor started speaking that she looked up at him.

"I'd like to do an X-ray," he said. "To check it's not broken."

"Sure," Kate was saying. "Thanks," she directed to Erin. "This is my roommate."

"Will," the Doctor stuck out his hand politely.

Erin returned his greeting and looked directly at him. She gulped: there was _something_ familiar in his eyes. Like, she'd seen them before. She tugged her hand away and glanced to the name on his badge. _Dr Will Halstead._

Erin's heart thumped. Halstead. _Jay's surname._

The Doctor rubbed his chin. "I'll be right back with a hospital chair for you," he soon disappeared around the corner.

"Kate," Erin poke her arm. "His name is Dr Halstead."

"So?" Kate's attention wasn't on the conversation.

"Jay's surname is Halstead!" she whispered in a hissed breath.

" _Ohh_ ," Kate continued to sip her water. Then "Ohh!" she said when she registered what Erin had said. "Wait, so… what? You think they're related?"

"They've got to be," Erin replied, remembering the sea green irises that were identical in the both of them. "I know Jay has a brother, because that's where he's been staying. I can't remember him saying he was a Doctor though-"

"I'll ask him," Kate grinned, nodding towards Will walking towards them, wheeling a hospital chair.

"Don't you dare!" Erin said under a hushed breath right before he approached them.

Kate hobbled into the chair on wheels, leaving the other two to walk side by side behind her. Dr Halstead pushed her along the corridor and Erin walked quietly, praying for Kate not to open her mouth.

"Hey Dr Halstead," Kate said, conversationally. "Do you have a brother?"

Erin's eyes closed in embarrassment. If Kate's ankle wasn't broken, she was about to break it for her.

"Yes I do," Will laughed, coming to a stop outside the X-ray room. He had a puzzled expression, wondering why his patient was curious.

"Is he… a cop?" Kate asked without turning around, so the doctor and Erin could only see the back of her head. It seemed to be rising and falling though, as if Kate was giggling to herself.

"Uh…yes he is," Will's eyes narrowed. "But how did you-"

Kate suddenly spun to face them. "Did you catch my roommate's name, Doctor?" A small glance at Erin gave Kate a mouthed _'I hate you'_ in return. Kate grinned. "It's Erin."

Will opened his mouth to say something, but Kate was continuing. "She works for J&J real estate."

" _Oh_ ," he smirked, realizing. Will folded his arms across his chest, a glisten in his eye. "So you're my brother's realtor," he nodded.

Erin felt a flood of color in her cheeks at the mention of him. "Guilty," she shrugged.

Will laughed. "I suppose I have to thank you," he started. "Thanks to you I might just get my couch back." He paused whilst his patient and her friend laughed. "I don't think I can take you into X-ray, but you're welcome to wait for Kate here?"

"Sure," Erin caught sight of the plastic chair behind her. She watched as the Doctor rolled Kate into the room.

 _Okay_ she thought _he's got to be the older brother._ He had a few more crinkles in his brow and a face with laughter lines. More stubble, although not that that had anything to do with age. The lack of it on Jay just made her come to the assumption he was the younger sibling.

In the X-ray room, Kate was still making conversation with Dr Halstead, attempting to play Cupid. "Your brother, he's single, right?"

Will pulled an unreadable expression. "Very much so," he said, then looked at her somewhat apologetically. "But I don't think you're-"

Kate scoffed and it interrupted him. "Not for me. For _her_ ," she threw a thumb up in the direction behind her. "He lives with you right now. Don't tell me he's never mentioned her to you before. Or tells you to shut up when you ask him about it," Kate laughed, remembering the way Erin reacted when she teased her on the subject.

"Oh, that sounds pretty familiar," Will agreed, shaking his head. He broke the conversation temporarily to set her up for X-ray. As he dimmed the light, he continued. "Did you know he almost got into trouble for showing her the areas of the district they aren't supposed to show the public?" he laughed.

"You're kidding," Kate replied, though it didn't actually surprise her.

"I'm betting he did it to try and impress her," Will continued. "I think he's into her."

Kate rolled her eyes- _that_ was something she already knew. "I know for a fact she likes him," she rubbed against her temples as Dr Halstead illuminated the room again. "Listen," she said. "Erin had this stupid rule where she doesn't date her clients. You gotta get your brother to make a move," Kate manoeuvred her position back into the hospital chair.

Will turned off the machine, wedging open the door so they could exit. "But I thought she'd found him a potential house, right?" He lowered his voice so Erin wouldn't hear them yet. "So technically he won't be her client anymore-"

"Dude," Kate interrupted. "Don't you think I've told her that already? She's a stubborn ass," she smiled.

"Oh God, so is _he_ ," Will agreed.

Kate held up her palms, shrugging. "Then I guess they're a match made in heaven!" she managed to exclaim before they reached where her roommate sat.

Will leaned against the chair Kate occupied, pretending to adjust it. "I'll see what I can do," he whispered. As he stood again, Erin walked over to them.

"Now I need you to keep it elevated," Will spoke in a professional tone. "The X-ray should be ready soon, but I can call you if that comes back with anything. As for the pain, I can give you something for that." He scribbled something on the prescription pad. "These will ease the swelling and a lotion will numb your ankle. You can pick them up from reception."

"Awesome," Erin nodded, moving behind her friend to wheel her back to the Jeep. "And, what _was_ that?" she asked when they were halfway down the corridor.

"What was _what?_ " Kate frowned, craning her neck to see Erin.

"That little thing," Erin gestured with her hands.

Kate kept her mouth shut for a second. She knew full well her roommate was referring to Will's whispering. "I have no idea what you're talking about." She wasn't facing Erin anymore, so smirked to herself.

Erin narrowed her eyes at the back of Kate's head: whatever they'd said, clearly Kate wasn't planning on telling her.

She let it slide, not wanting to cause an argument and drove Kate home. Her roommate's boyfriend pulled back the door as soon as they arrived.

"What the hell happened?!" Dan exclaimed, noticing how wrapped up Kate's foot was.

Kate's grimace told them she was either still in pain, or pissed at him. Or both.

"She took a trip," Erin told him, shifting Kate's weight largely onto him. "The Doctor recommended rest," she added, accompanying them into the lounge. She watched Kate as she crashed onto the couch. "I'll leave you in capable hands," Erin laughed, her eyes darting to Dan. Though they could be arguing, she could leave them to it.

"Yeah, thanks Erin," Kate looked over at her, smiling. "Where are you going?"

"I'll do the food shopping," Erin laughed. "Seeing as you're temporarily unable to," she smirked. "See you soon."

* * *

Jay crossed- then uncrossed- his legs as he rested them against Will's coffee table. His position was becoming increasingly uncomfortable: a sign he'd been slouching on the couch for too long. He used his right hand to flick through the channels on Will's TV. Eventually he stopped on the movie channels, thinking maybe he could settle for some comedy.

It wasn't a typical way to spend his Saturday night- usually he'd be at the bar or out with the guys. Sometimes he did things with Will but he wasn't in from Med yet. He was half-tempted to phone the District and offer overtime, before deciding against it. _He could go back to work Monday, as planned._

Mid way through Jay's movie, he heard the door slam. Then footsteps along the hallway to the lounge. Will's face appeared around the doorframe.

"Have you moved at all today?"

"I went to the gym this morning," Jay replied. In his defence, he probably deserved a chill day on the couch: sometimes, cop workload was heavy. Still, he knew Will was joking. "Did you work a double shift today?"

"Yeah," Will yawned and threw his jacket on the back of the couch. Then he sat in the vacant armchair. "I met your girl today."

Jay's head snapped towards his brother, having only been half0listening beforehand. His last reply made Jay's ears prick up. For a ridiculous second, he thought Will was making a stupid reference to Jasmine. _But_ Jay thought _even Will wouldn't go that low._

The younger Halstead crinkled his brow. "What?"

Will was laughing before his brother even replied. "Erin."

Jay wanted to roll his eyes, but didn't want to give Will a reaction. Remembering just where Will worked, his eyes widened. "Where did you see her?"

"Oh, _look_ at you getting all concerned," Will teased. "That's a sign you care about her, you know."

"Shut up," he couldn't help rolling his eyes this time. "Was she at Med?"

"Yeah," Will said casually, aware of how agitated his sibling was getting. "Relax. She was with her roommate-"

"Kate?"

"Yeah," Will said again. "They were out running and Kate took a fall. I had to do an X-ray." He didn't break eye contact with Jay, noticing how he came to life at the mention of Erin. He also recognized his brother not saying anything about the 'his girl' reference.

Jay appeared to turn his attention back to the movie, though Will still wasn't done with the conversation. He felt the other side of the couch dip and turned his head to find his brother grinning childishly. "What's up?" Jay frowned.

"Kate said Erin had found you a house-"

Jay looked puzzled. _Had he not told his brother that already?_ He could have sworn different. Jay scratched against his neck. "She did," he admitted.

"You gonna ask her out now then?" Will asked, smirking.

It took him by surprise. "What? No," Jay replied. "Even if I was gonna, it's none of your-"

"None of my business, yeah, whatever," this time, Will rolled his eyes, amused by the fact Jay was still trying to kid himself. "But Kate told me the feelings are mutual."

"Yeah?" Jay thought back to how well they'd got on back at the District. How she'd been flirty and laughing with him all afternoon, though he'd originally thought she was that way with the majority of her clients. _So did this mean she wasn't?_ "What exactly did you and Kate talk about?" he asked curiously, taking the assumption the realtor and himself had been the main topic of their conversation.

"We talked about the fact that you're both fucking stubborn," Will laughed, even though Jay attempted to object and butt in. He sighed, folding his arms on his chest and shaking his head slightly. "Kate said Erin has this rule about not dating her clients," he thumped Jay's arm. "But, newsflash, you ain't gonna be her client anymore soon."

Jay nodded in agreement. There was little point in lying to his brother: Will could read him like a book. "Okay Cupid, so what do you suppose I do?"

Will shrugged, ignoring his brother's sarcastic tone. "Duh, ask. Her. Out. You gotta make the first move."

Jay scratched against his chin. It came to something when Will was the one talking sense. "Yeah, you're right," he said finally. "I'll say something Monday."

"You wanna," Will laughed. "I doubt a girl that pretty is gonna stay single for long-"

"Stop it," Jay was met with his brother's laughter. Will knew fine well he was winding Jay up.

"Alright, I'm sorry," Will surrendered, innocently holding up a palm in apology. "So what's this house like?"

Jay smirked, pulling out his cell phone from his pocket. "Pretty cool," he searched quickly for the photographic images Erin had sent him. Passing the phone to Will, he watched his brother's eyes widen.

Will flicked through the mini galley Jay had. "Holy crap," he said, impressed. "This is nice!"

"I know," Jay pulled his phone back, slightly smug that Will seemed jealous. "Once I get the paperwork from Erin, it shouldn't be too long before I can move in."

"How can _you_ afford somewhere like that?" Will questioned.

Jay expected it: the price mark wasn't on the image but it didn't take a genius to figure out it was gonna be expensive. "I'm not stupid, Will. I know a nice place when I see one. I still have the money Mom left us," there was sadness in his tone and both of them were quiet for a minute, until Jay spoke again. "Plus… being a cop doesn't pay all that bad," he chuckled, brightening the mood once more.

"I'll say," Will tutted, clicking his tongue. "I gotta admit, she found you a place pretty quickly. She must be desperate to get rid of you," he was back to teasing.

"It's not that," Jay replied, his eyes twinkling. "She's just incredibly good at her job."

* * *

Jay stuffed his hands in his pockets after he'd found a place to park and locked the car. He'd quickly changed out of patrol uniform and driven to his Monday afternoon appointment with Erin.

He'd been thinking about his realtor since his conversation with Will on Saturday evening. When his older brother had first mentioned his talk with Kate, Jay didn't know whether to believe him. It was somewhat typical behavior of Will to tease him, that's what older siblings were made for.

But he didn't think Kate could be lying either. She'd been witness to the two of them spending time together at the open day. If Erin _had_ spoken to her about him, she would know how Erin actually felt. And Kate had fed that right back to Will.

He'd kinda been tempted to call Erin before the weekend was out- until he realized he still only had her work cell digits- and _that_ was laying in her desk until Monday morning.

He could use the weekend to figure out what to say in this instance: what, sort out their real estate business and then ask her out? It wasn't as though he was gonna drop it mid-conversation: for now, their professional relationship was the most important.

Jay checked his watch on his way into the building. It was just before 2:30 meaning he was slightly early- though better to be than late. There was bound to be a reception area he could wait in before his desired meeting.

He pushed hard against the intercom, surprised at how quickly he was let into the building.

The only room he'd been to previously was Erin's office so Jay checked his surroundings: it really did resemble more of a hotel than a real estate office. He walked slowly to an open area occupied by couches and helped himself to a glass of water from the fountain that was there.

"Can I help you?" A deep, professional voice came from behind him.

Jay spun his position fast, to see a guy dressed in what looked like a highly expensive three-piece suit. His hair was slicked back in an old fashion and an over-the-top grin was plastered on his face. He looked Jay up and down, waiting for an answer.

"I…" Jay swallowed, kinda intimidated at the guy's appearance. "I have a meeting with Miss Lindsay," he didn't know the guy so didn't disclose how well he got along with Erin, referring to her professionally.

The man looked at Jay sceptically before the smile returned. He stepped towards Jay and held out a hand. "Mitch Johnson, thank you for choosing J&J realtors," he introduced himself.

Jay recognized the surname from the family names in the real estate title. _This_ guy was the owner of the company. Not wanting to keep such an important individual waiting, the Detective shook his hand. "Jay Halstead."

"I trust you find yourself in capable hands," Mitch continued. "Erin is the best realtor I have in this place."

"Oh I don't doubt that," Jay had to agree. "She's found me a pretty neat place."

"That sounds like my Erin," the words rolled off Mitch's tongue. "Where is it, the property she found you?"

"Uh," Jay racked his brain, remembering the name of the street. "Park Drive."

"Ah," Mitch's eyes closed and he nodded, as though he was picturing the place. "The one that just came up available? Impressive."

"Yup. I'm-"

"I can't believe she gained interest in that already," Mitch continued on his spiel, seeming to get more enthusiastic with each sentence. "So you're here to sign papers?"

"I am," Jay nodded, when Mitch eventually paused for an answer.

"Well don't let me keep you from doing that," the head realtor thumped Jay on the back. "Erin's office is just along this way."

Jay didn't bother to stay and tell him he already knew that- or to say that he was still early- and walked off down the corridor, away from Mitch. He crushed up the now empty water container and dropped it in a trash can a few steps from her office.

He stopped abruptly outside the door to her workplace, taking a peek in the small glass window.

Erin was sat at her desk, the work handset in her left hand, scribbling something furiously with her right. A large strand of her hair escaped from behind her ear and Jay continued to watch as she put down the pen to push it back. Then she was straight back to writing quickly.

His sneaking watch of her in her office made Jay realize why she was so good at her job: he worked _hard_ at it. The way her gaze flitted between what she was writing and the computer screen, the way her mouth seemed to be moving at the same speed as her writing pen. Jay peeked for a few extra seconds before tapping a knuckle against the glass.

Erin looked up, the crease in her brow slowly disappearing as she made eye contact with him. A shy smile instead worked its way across her face as she put down the pen and curled a finger to beckon him inside.

"Hey," she mouthed, pointing to the chair opposite her.

Jay closed the door quietly and sat in the vacant lounger, listening as she finished off her conversation. He stifled a laugh when she pulled a face- a face indicating whoever was on the other end of the phone didn't wanna shut up.

"Oh God, I'm _sorry_ ," Erin said as she slammed the phone down eventually.

"Hey don't sweat it," Jay said. "I was early."

"Still, it's rude to be on a call with a client when you've got another one waiting," she shrugged apologetically. "How are you?"

"Pretty good," he replied. "Did you have a good weekend?"

Erin laughed, remembering the events of Saturday. "I spent half of the day in Med with Kate," she relaxed in her chair, tapped fingers against the armrests. "I…uh, met your brother."

"He," Jay scratched his neck. "Yeah he mentioned that," he said, thinking _it wasn't the only thing he mentioned._ "Is she alright?"

His realtor nodded. "Let's just say she won't be accompanying me on a morning run any time soon," her tone was light, signifying to Jay her roommate didn't do anything too serious. "She'll live, your brother got back with her X-ray results. No breaks, just a sprain."

"That's good," Jay said. "I'm glad she's okay."

"Me too," Erin replied, smiling. She moved to pull open a drawer in her desk, her hair falling to hide her face as she did so. "Now, back to you," she produced paperwork and blushed slightly whilst she addressed him. "Number 10 Park Drive. You're sure on it?"

"Absolutely," Jay clasped his hands together. "Where do I sign?"

"There's quite a few," she revealed, spreading apart the sheets in front of him. "But the good thing is I only need your signature," Erin pointed towards the dotted lines at the ends of the pages. She pushed the clippings in Jay's direction and watched him as he complied, flicking quickly when he'd signed.

"I haven't even read them," Jay realize, laughing at how easily he'd followed her instructions. "You're not signing me up to some shady deal, are you?" He cast a smirk in her direction.

"I wouldn't dream of it," she said back, small giggles escaping the back of her throat. "Here, let me talk you through them." Erin shuffled her chair as close to the desk as she could get it. She crossed her legs beneath it and reached her arms across it. She tapped a finger several times on top of the fullest document. "This is the most important one, your contract," she narrowed her eyes at him in humorous fashion. "You also have this one for your mortgage, the contract for utilities, electricity and also your parking permit. For if you gotta park on the street," Erin continued. "Oh, and this?" her voice was quieter this time. "Is a written agreement with J&J real estate saying that once the property is yours, we can't be held responsible for the house."

"Right," Jay nodded. He appreciated how thorough she was being because now he knew what he was signing for. It also meant their meeting was prolonged, which was always a bonus.

"If you're done with those," Erin looked on as Jay nodded and set down the pen she'd provided. "I need to make a copy for you," she used both palms to push back her swivel chair. Then she stood and tried to discreetly smooth out her pant-suit. Piling up the paperwork, Erin walked briskly to her copier and set it to work. As it sprung to life, she leaned against it and looked out of the window then back at Jay.

He seemed to be taking in the appearance of her office. "I think I met your boss earlier."

Erin pulled a face, one where her top lip disappeared beneath her lower. "Mitch?" Her eyes fell to the newly printed paper and she picked them up. "What did he say to you?" She made it back over to where Jay was and sat instead on the edge of her desk rather than her chair. She placed his copy of the contracts in front of him.

Jay took them from her grip, catching the slightest brush of her pinky finger as he did so. "He was pretty impressed with my choice," he chuckled. "Said I was lucky to have a realtor like _his_ Erin," he recalled exactly how Mitch had referred to her: it had sounded possession-like, and Jay hadn't overlooked it.

Erin imitated shoving a finger down her throat and stuck out her tongue. "Oh God, he's gross sometimes," she rolled her eyes again. "He actually called me that?"

"It was like he wanted me to know," Jay lay his pile of papers next to where she occupied the desk. He shifted position and leaned towards her.

"If he wasn't the head of this company…" she trailed off, leaving Jay to only imagine what she would have said. Erin shuddered. "I, yeah, um… No." She crossed her legs in front of her.

"That's good then," Jay smirked, watching as she rose from the edge of the desk and headed for a small cabinet against the wall. _Did she smirk too, as she walked away?_ He was pretty sure he wasn't seeing things.

"I guess these are yours now," Erin said as she opened the door of it to unhook something.

Jay heard a small jangle as he realized they were his new home keys. Erin tossed them in his direction and he caught them mid-air. It was another minute before she'd resumed her position on the desk: this time resting against the same side Jay sat.

"Thanks," he gestured, holding up the keyring she'd provided.

"I know this sounds cliché," Erin smiled, turning towards him. "But it has been fun working with you." Her tone was warm yet she sounded kinda shy. "I'm kinda glad Nancy passed you over to me."

Jay had almost forgotten about the previous realtor, the one before Erin. "Me too," he had to agree; she'd been far more successful than her colleague had been. And... _it had been fun, hadn't it?_ He stood up from the office chair at the same time she stood from her desk.

"Thank you for finding me this place," he stood slightly awkwardly, unaware of the protocol of what happened at the end of these meetings. _You certainly weren't supposed to ask out your realtor_ Jay thought. _But to hell with that kind of thinking._

He remembered what Will had fed back to him: the rule Erin had with her clients. _Though_ he imagined _I can't tell her I know that._

A broad smile spread across his face as he looked at her. She gestured a goodbye sign without moving from her spot. Erin continued to watch until his frame became a shadow, the only part of him remaining being his fingers, curling around the doorframe. Her breath only had time to hitch in her throat before he reappeared suddenly, his palm still resting against the door. He didn't speak for a minute, instead keeping quiet, resulting in an unsure look on Erin's face.

Eventually, Jay laughed nervously. "Here's the thing," he scratched the back of his beck, a move he did when he was feeling particularly anxious. "I gotta be honest with you," his pause caused Erin to assume something bad, her brow furrowing low above her eyelids. "Will told me Kate told him that you don't date clients." Jay gave a shrug. "…I'm no longer your client."

Erin's jaw hung low, as her mind registered his speech.

His mouth was moving again before her reply. "Can I take you for coffee? What time do you finish?"

"I don't have anything else to do today," she said, glancing towards the carpet.

"Erin," the sound of her name on his lips caused her to look up. "It's just coffee."

"I know," she nodded: it _was_ just coffee. "I just-"

"Hear me out," Jay was back into her office now, closing the gap between them so his breath was hot in her face. "A coffee. At my favorite spot. Put it this way, if anything goes wrong, you never have to see me again," his eyes widened as he looked at her.

It took her a second to realize she'd been holding her breath. As she let it out, she nodded. "Okay deal," she moved towards her computer screen to shut it off and grab her purse. She followed him out of the room, locking her office behind her.

 _Just. A. Coffee._

 **Please Review!**


	7. Coffee

Despite living in Chicago for the largest part of her life, Erin didn't recognize the streets Jay was driving her though. That fact surprised her: being a real estate agent meant she had to be pretty familiar with the city. Still, she found herself in new surroundings as Jay continued their journey.

A journey he'd insisted on driving to: _"Think of it as payback for those house viewings you drove us to,"_ he'd said. She'd agreed reluctantly and sat in the passenger seat of his car, glancing every now and then out of the window at sights she'd never seen before.

"So, I'd love to know where you're taking me," Erin broke their temporary quiet. "I've never even heard of these streets."

"No?" Jay's attention darted from the road to his passenger. The street he drove on was quiet so his change in position didn't concern her too much. One of his palms tapped against the wheel, in time with the familiar tone coming from the radio. "This is one of the best places in the city," he told her, a smile growing on his face.

His expression was one that made her grin too, it was infectious. Erin could make out the gleam of his teeth through the evening dusk. The color stood out against the shadows.

"It's super pretty," she couldn't deny the beauty of the area. Even if she wasn't thinking as a realtor, Jay had certainly found a hidden gem in the city. She was busy still taking in such sights that she didn't realize at first when Jay pulled the break.

"I don't believe it!" It was Jay's exclamation that startled her. Only when she'd followed his gaze did she understand his sudden outburst. He'd parked outside a one-level building with a paved walkway and floral arrangement outside of it. An array of sparkled lights lit up the front of the building. Or rather, they _would_ have done if-

"It's closed!" Jay continued, stating the obvious. There were no other lights on, apart from the street lamps and if that didn't give it away, also a huge 'Closed' sign hanging on the front entrance.

"Oh no," Erin said with a tinge of sadness. She meant it too: she'd been rather intrigued at what sort of place Jay had chosen. It certainly didn't look like an average coffee shop; obviously Jay had been looking forward to it as well, by the look of disappointment on his face. He flicked the switch above them to light the car and it illuminated both their faces.

"Hang on," he said, scratching against his stubble. "I'll see what the sign says, it's never closed this early."

Erin watched him dart from his Jeep, taking large strides until he reached the door. He hesitated for a few moments, shook his head then headed back to the car.

" _Closed until further notice,_ " Jay repeated the words he'd read. He slouched back in the driver's seat and folded his arms across his chest. "My mom used to bring me and Will to this place when we were kids," he revealed, turning towards her. He seemed to go quiet for a moment, Erin thought she saw the flicker of a memory cross his eyelids. "They used to make the best latte's I've ever tasted. I thought it would be cool to show you," he added.

She laughed a bit at the coffee comment: he'd obviously been paying attention to just how much of the stuff she drank herself. "You were allowed to drink coffee when you were a kid?"

"Oh," Jay joined her laughter. "No, it used to be hot chocolate. Until it turned to coffee. If it was warm, mom would take us around the park at the back. The walkway goes all the way by the lake," he told her, pointing towards the stones that led through to an area she couldn't see.

Erin looked first at him then outside. She didn't want him to feel that tonight had been a total waste of time. "Well," she said. "It's not even dusk yet. We could still go for the walk?"

"Yeah?" Jay raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised at her offer. Erin was still dressed in her work stuff unlike him, who'd had time to change. "You sure?"

Erin noticed what he was looking at. "Oh _please_ ," she laughed, reaching down for her purse that was down by her feet. "These things are for the professional look," she confessed, pulling free the sneakers she often kept with her. Erin tugged off her heels with a silent sigh of relief and switched to the comfier footwear. "I just hope it's not cold out," she continued, to the sound of Jay's laughter. He was chuckling at what she'd pulled from her purse. He seemed to find it hilarious that she'd paired her sneakers with her pant suit.

 _She makes it work though_ he thought.

"It's not so bad," Jay replied, recalling the temperature from before when he'd jumped out of the car. "But here, you can take this," he reached into the rear seats of his Jeep, pulling forwards his large black hoodie. Jay passed it over to her, lightly caressing her fingers with his own.

"Are you gonna be warm enough?" she asked, dropping her purse underneath the seat so it was hidden. Erin shuffled forward and draped his jacket around her shoulders, immediately feeling warmer. As she turned her head, she brushed her nose against the collar of it. Unsurprisingly, it smelled like him. A mixture of cologne and … was it candy? And a tinge of something muskier, not that it was a bad thing. Erin wrapped it further across herself and smiled.

"Don't worry about me," he was already looking at her. "Ready?" he gestured.

They slammed closed the doors at the same time. Jay met her at the hood of the car and Erin followed him towards the rear end of the building.

"Are we even allowed to be here?" Erin asked in a half-whisper. She'd been so caught up in his company that she didn't realize until now there was nobody else around. And, although there was nothing to tell them different, Erin felt like she was trespassing. Which, if she was honest, gave her a secret thrill.

"There's nothing saying we shouldn't be," Jay smirked and gestured for her to go first around the corner. "After you."

Erin walked just one step ahead of him, unaware of where she was going. It was a further few steps before the stones she walked on spread into a wider scene and they stood surrounded by trees and the stream.

She felt herself gulp: she wasn't usually known to take in nature but it really was beautiful. Especially with the time of day it was; the night was turning a dark shade of grey and the stars were appearing. Erin felt the breeze at her side falter a little as Jay's body caught up with her stride and blocked out the wind. He kept at her side as they walked leisurely around the water.

"This scene is to die for," Erin interrupted the quiet air. He'd stopped temporarily for her to slot her arm through the gap of his. She'd not hesitated to do so, recalling how long it had been since she'd felt this comfortable in the presence of a guy.

"I know," Jay agreed, pulling his hand from the pocket of his jeans and tenderly linking their fingers. The movement sent snippets of electricity through her and Erin found her thumb subconsciously moving back and forth across Jay's hand.

"Does your mom still come here?" Erin changed the topic of conversation suddenly: the mention before of another Halstead meant she was curious.

Jay's gulp was audible and his look of apparent apprehension made Erin regret what she'd asked. Perhaps the question had been too personal for how well they knew each other right now.

He stepped aside slightly, tugging Erin's arm towards him. Jay had taken particular notice of where they had stopped.

"Come here a second," he said in little more than a whisper. "We should sit."

Erin's brow crinkled slightly because he'd avoided her question but still spoken to her. Only when she'd caught up with his footfall did she see a carved wooden bench, hidden in the shadows but surrounded by all kinds of flowers. There seemed to be a mixture of blues, pinks and purples. _And it would look even more beautiful in the daylight, with the sun shining down_ she thought.

Jay had sat already, not breaking their hand hold but looked behind him, towards the back of the makeshift seat. Erin's eyes moved to something glistening in the now-near darkness but she couldn't quite make it out. The Detective turned back to her and realized her struggle to see what it said. With his free hand, Jay reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, activating the torch app. He shone it directly onto what Erin had been trying to read.

She closed the gap between them but bent slightly so she could see. Her closer inspection made Erin's fingers tighten around Jay's and she found herself holding her breath.

" _Erected in memory of Ellen Halstead, a loving mother. May her soul rest in eternal peace._ "

Erin didn't realize she'd been reading aloud until Jay moved the torch's position when she had finished. A strangled strange noise got trapped in her throat for a minute before she managed to swallow it away. "But that's-"

"My mom," Jay confirmed, pulling her towards him to sit with him on the bench.

Erin blinked a few times. It wasn't often she was rendered speechless, but somehow she didn't know what to say. Every sentence she put together in her mind didn't seem worthy. "Jay, I-"

"This was one of her favorite places to hang. Especially when she got sick," he paused, a small smile forming at the squeeze coming from Erin's palm. "I think she liked the view of the lake. She could sit for hours with an ice-cream or a coffee," his smile grew into the slightest laugh as he seemed to remember. "That's how I remember her anyway," he revealed. "It was a long time ago."

"I'm so sorry Jay," it was her attempt at comforting him, even though he perhaps didn't need it. Erin didn't feel as though she was good at the sympathy thing: _what was the right thing to say to somebody who'd experienced such a tragedy?_ She certainly didn't know.

"I didn't tell you that or bring you here to make you feel sorry for me," Jay said, putting away his cell phone so they were consumed by the darkness. "I didn't want it to be depressing tonight either," he huffed out air in a way that it sounded like laughter. He gazed at her for a minute. "She would have liked you," he continued.

Erin was thankful for the darkness: it meant Jay couldn't see the tomato shade of her cheeks. She was adamant that Jay was just being nice to her but he continued:

"My mom was kind of a feminist," Jay laughed again. "Her favorite thing about a person was how much they stood up for themselves. She liked people who have a good intelligent head on their shoulders. Somebody who knows what they want in life. I feel like you're one of those good ones, Erin."

 _Holy shit_ she thought _if I was speechless before, I definitely am now._ This man and his way with words were turning her insides to jello. And he was comparing her with others his mom had looked up to. What more could you want when you were into a guy?

Because she was….totally into him. Hanging out with him tonight was making her realize it.

"I'd like to think I am," Erin replied to him, trapping a curl between her fingers and pushing it behind her ear. She spoke quietly but he didn't struggle to hear. They were the only ones there, after all.

"You're not good at taking a compliment are you?" Jay turned towards her, noticing how soft her grip had become. He moved his arm to rest against the back of the bench, at the same time closing the gap between the positions they took.

She knew exactly why he'd said it. While he was speaking, she'd unconsciously felt herself tense and he'd felt it too. He was right: she wasn't used to being complimented in a genuine way like Jay meant it. There were numerous clients who'd tell her she was pretty, say something sleazy about the way she looked…all to try and get some sort of deal on a property. Then there were office jokes- perhaps about her assets- that went too far. Mitch came to mind and Erin shook her head to get him out of it.

"I…uh, bad experiences." she shrugged.

"Really?" His tone was one of genuine surprise. He watched a shiver run through Erin on cue: it wasn't hard to tell that the temperature was dropping. Still, he didn't want to lose her company just yet. Jay cracked the knuckles of his hand on his knee. "Let me know if there's anything I can do about that," he said, only half-joking.

"It's nice of you to offer," a giggle escaped her. "Most of them were clients though so I'm probably never gonna see them again." Erin relaxed so her body fell back against Jay's arm. "And the one that _isn't_ a client," she stifled a shiver. "…you've met. I don't wanna add fuel to the fire."

Erin's attempt at hiding her body shudder didn't surpass Jay. He leaned back himself, lifting his arm from the bench and over her shoulders instead.

"Let me guess," his voice was one pitch away from a whisper. "Mitch?"

She nodded towards him. "You would be correct," Erin confirmed. She shuffled her position- her ass becoming numb- so her knees were towards him. She shrugged. "I tend to ignore anything that comes out of his mouth though."

"It doesn't take a genius to figure out your boss is an asshole Erin," Jay laughed as he spoke even though there was obvious sincerity in what he'd said. "And I can't exactly blame him. I mean…you are incredibly beautiful."

Erin shook her head away from him. But the tips of her ears tingled, the way they always did when they heard something they liked.

"Hey," one of Jay's fingers found its way to beneath her chin. He used it to turn her face back towards his. He felt the invisible hairs of her jawline stand on edge. "You're cold."

"I'm not," she lied, her breath hitching in her throat when she turned to realize how close his face was. Erin freed one of her hands from the inside of his jacket, turning back slightly and tracing the outline of the plaque behind them. "I think she sounds like an amazing mom," she drastically changed the subject and turned away from Jay's mom's inscribing, closing her eyes.

"She definitely was," Jay moved suddenly. He took one glance at the spot where Erin had been looking and then stood up, waiting for her to follow. "And if I knew my mom at all, she wouldn't wanna be taking up any more of our date."

Erin smirked, standing and casting him a glance over her shoulder. "I didn't know this was a date."

Jay held out his hand towards her. "Well that's good news for me," he tugged at the collar of his hoodie to stop her shivers. "If you're not classing this as a date, that means I get to take you out again." A grin lit up his face. "I'm pretty gutted we didn't get out coffee though," he muttered as they walked back to his car.

She was too, but didn't say so. The sheer fact this was a memory from his childhood and he'd wanted to bring her here made her insides want to explode. It was also intriguing: the fact that he wanted to plan an official 'date'. Erin found herself excited for it, even though she hated the word.

"You've gone quiet," they'd reached where his car was parked and now Jay faced her. They'd parked in a place right by the street lights, allowing them to see each other properly. "You're okay if I take you out again, right?"

The apprehension of Jay's tone moved her. Erin knew she was good at hiding her true emotions, something that had caused trouble in her past. The fact that this guy was willing to work hard to get her was _hot_.

"I'm more than okay with it," Erin smiled, her eyes drifting to the floor before ascending back to the Detective.

He took a step toward her, a hand working the line of her jaw again. "Good," he whispered, pulling her tight into his embrace, closing his eyes and pressing himself against her. Jay felt the gentle touch of her lips, she felt the rougher but still tender outline of his. It was over a second later and half of him wanted to apologize- a car parking spot for their first embrace!- but didn't. It had felt right to do it.

"I've wanted to do that since we first arrived here," he said truthfully. "Though I didn't wanna do it in front of my mom," Jay scratched the back of his head. "I…uh…you know what I mean."

Erin nodded, her index and third finger hovering around her lips. She hadn't wanted him to back away at first, a sign that the kiss had left her wanting more. Though it had been the lightest touch, Erin swore she could still taste him on her lips. She couldn't dwell on how it made her feel, afraid that her silence would cause him to overthink his spontaneous move.

"We should go," he suggested. "From here, at least. I'll drive you home," Jay turned to open the passenger door for her before climbing into his own side.

Erin held tight onto the palm that he wasn't using for driving. "I left my car at the office," she remembered.

Jay frowned. "I could drop you for it tomorrow? Unless you need it for anything tonight?"

She didn't, knowing that she'd only be going back home. "It's alright, I can get it tomorrow," she replied. Erin watched as the familiar shape of her street came up in front of her. They'd reached her home quicker that she'd anticipated and definitely much quicker than she'd wanted. _Had she really been in his company for the best part of three hours?_

"This is you, right?" he asked.

It was where Jay had pulled up when he'd dropped Erin and Kate back from the District open day. A few metres away from the door to Erin's place. She'd insisted on the opposite corner to prevent her client from knowing where she lived. That was, back when she didn't _want_ him knowing where she lived.

"That next one is me," Erin pointed. Jay rolled the car forward slightly. "Do you wanna come in?" her mouth moved and shouted out before her brain registered what she was saying. She didn't wanna give Jay the wrong impression: she _never_ did this, never invited guys back to her place. As she turned in the passenger seat to face him, Erin noticed the look on Jay's face seemed to be stuck in two minds also.

He dug fingers deep into his hair, dragging back the strands from his forehead. For a hot second, his expression seemed to look pained. "I can't actually believe I'm gonna say this," he made a noise halfway between a grunt and a chuckle. "But maybe I shouldn't. I have an early morning wake up call," Jay's groan was obvious this time. "Can I take you out Friday? I do actually owe you a coffee," he smirked.

"Of course," Erin laughed, moving first to remove his jacket from her shoulders before opening the door. "I'll hold you to it."

"You can hold onto that," Jay tapped against her forearm, gesturing to his item of clothing. He pulled his hand away temporarily then cradled her jaw with an open palm. The soft caress of his touch electrified her insides. Jay curled the index finger of his other hand and Erin shuffled forwards towards him, her eyes already fluttering closed. She let out the smallest gasp as his lips touched hers, if possible in an even softer way than they'd done before. Erin opened her mouth slowly, a second after his tongue had moistened the line of her lower lip. She'd been just about to perform her favorite move- an ever-so-light claw of his bottom lip with her front teeth- before she heard, and felt, Jay laugh into her mouth and force himself away.

"Huh," he sighed, cocking his head to the side. "If you keep kissing me like that, shit Erin, I just might change my mind," Jay blew out a breath and looked at her.

"I'm going," she winked, opening the door. Erin grabbed for her purse that she'd concealed from sight and turned away from him, the breeze immediately hitting her face. When she shut the door, he rolled down the window and she bent to see him. "I'll see you," she grinned.

"Mhm," he nodded, smirking back. His upper lip was hidden, his attempt at hiding his sheer, what? _Excitement?_ Like he yearned for Friday already.

Erin felt his eyes upon the back of her as she headed for the door. She somehow knew, without looking behind her, that he wouldn't drive off until she was out of his sight. As she fumbled for her keychain, Erin did sneak a glance over her shoulder. Sure enough, the hood of Jay's Jeep lit up as she reached the block entrance.

Kate was still awake watching a movie in the lounge when Erin got back into the apartment. She groaned internally, knowing she'd receive the third-degree from her roommate when she noticed she was home.

"Oh!" Kate jumped in her position when Erin appeared at the lounge door. The started look soon turned to something else. "And where have _you_ been?" she grinned.

"Don't give me that," Erin flopped down on the vacant cushion beside her friend. "You know where I've been."

"Technically I don't," Kate crossed her arms. "But I bet I can guess who you've been with…" her eyebrows wiggled. Kate's eyes darted to the clothes her friend was modelling. "And I'm gonna take a wild guess here and say you haven't started wearing guy's clothing that's three sizes too big for you to work," she nudged Erin's ribs, knowing she was teasing. "Where did you go?" she asked, rather intrigued.

Erin remembered then that she was wearing Jay's hoodie, tracing a finger in circles along one of the cuffs. As she turned to face her roommate, her nose again brushed the collar and she took in the cologne scene she was slowly becoming familiar with. Her eyes closed temporarily as she recalled her night. "We went for coffee-"

"Is that what they're calling it these days?" Kate interrupted.

"If you don't quit the interrupting, I might just _accidentally,_ " Erin's hand hovered over Kate's injury. She'd followed the medical advice and kept it rested, though she was still in pain. Erin slammed her hand higher than the swollen area, though Kate's audible gasp came anyway. "You gonna shut up now?" she asked the question, but didn't wait for an answer. "Or, coffee was the plan. Turns out his go-to coffee spot was closed off. He told me it was a place he went with Will and his mom, they'd drink hot chocolate and walk around the park when they were kids. It was my idea to not waste the trip so we still went for the walk."

Kate nodded her response, knowing the consequence if she interrupted. The gesture was Erin's cue to continue.

"We strolled by the lake until it got dark. He…his mom has a memorial bench there."

"For who?" Kate finally spoke again. A hand flew to her mouth in realization. "Oh," her gaze dropped. "She died?"

"Yeah," Erin nodded. She fidgeted aimlessly with both hands, quiet for a minute. "I didn't get a lot exactly but he mentioned that she was sick. Although," Erin hesitated, unsure on whether to disclose _everything_ she and Jay had discussed together. "Jay said she would have 'like me'," she direct quoted him.

"Wow," Kate raised her eyebrows at the comment. "It's like you met his mom on the first date," she giggled, making light of the situation. "Damn that man must like you."

Erin shuffled her position, knowing her roommate was speaking the truth.

"So," Kate crossed her arms together. "You came home wearing his jacket. I'm guessing that means you're seeing him again?"

"Friday," Erin didn't hesitate to show her true feelings this time, a sly grin spreading across her face. "We made plans for Friday."

"Oh, yay!" Kate's happiness for her friend was evident and she clasped her hands together enthusiastically. "Where are you gonna go?"

"I don't know," Erin shrugged. They hadn't got onto discussing that part…

"What are you gonna do?"

"I don't know."

"What are you gonna wear?"

"Yeah, I don't know," Erin laughed, knowing Kate was gonna comment on this.

"Don't know a lot, do you?" Kate's reply was sassy.

"I know he's a good kisser," Erin smirked, noticing the snacks Kate had and throwing a piece of popcorn into her mouth.

"I don't know who you are or what you've done with my best friend," Kate teased. "But I like this new Erin that's dating her client and goes about kissing him on the first date."

Erin thought about objecting; it had hardly been a conventional "first date" but she'd still kissed him. Or he'd kissed her. Or _whatever_.

"He's got to you," Kate assumed. "You haven't wiped that smirk from your face since you walked back in here." Her own smile was genuine as she looked at her friend. "Wow, I'm proud of me. This whole thing was my idea," Kate laughed, taking credit for the blossoming relationship. "I think I'm almost excited as you to see where this goes."

Erin didn't reply but stole more bits from Kate's snack stash, thinking exactly the same as her roommate. She too was pretty elated at the thrill of breaking client rule and seeing where whatever this was was going to lead.

* * *

"Is that you, Jay?" his brother's voice drifted from the kitchen.

" _Shit_ ," Jay cursed under his breath as he closed the door of Will's apartment. He'd been hoping his older brother would still be working, or in bed, so he could avoid the twenty questions about where he'd been. He took a breath and pushed through to the kitchen where Will sat, working his way to the end of a bowl of pasta.

"Sup," Will said, spraying a small amount of sauce in front of him. He set down his dish and picked up his coffee. Knowing the interchangeable shifts the Doctor worked, Jay decided this meal could either be his breakfast or his dinner. Jay guessed it was the latter, given the fact he wasn't in scrubs and his hair was a mess. He'd be home for the night.

"Where did you get to?"

"Went out with Erin," Jay said casually, knowing he may as well come straight out with it. He tore away a piece of Will's garlic bread and stuffed it into his mouth. _He should have taken Erin for food_ he thought, as his stomach grumbled on cue.

"There's pasta on the stove," Will apparently heard his hunger. His gaze followed Jay as he walked over to heat up the food. "Let me guess… The Coffee Bean?"

"How did you…" Jay turned quickly, startled.

Will's laughter filled the room. "Sometimes I think you forget that we're related. I have good memories of that place too, you know."

Jay turned off the stove and joined his brother back at the table, his bowl colliding the surface with a thud. "Still," he said. "How did you know that right away?"

"Jay," Will stopped laughing but still smiled. "Dude, I'm your older brother. Even when we were kids, I could see how much you loved the place. You used to scream sometimes when mom told you it was time to leave-"

"No I didn't," the younger Halstead scoffed, focusing on his dinner.

"Relax Jay you were like…five," Will was laughing again as he recalled the memory. "Anyway you know it's still a special place for both of us," he looked up for a brief second before making eye contact again with his younger brother. "And I figured you like this girl but you didn't want it to be too formal…so that's where you took her."

"Yeah, well it was closed," Jay rolled his eyes, half as reinforcement at what he was saying and half at his brother. It was annoying how well Will knew him. "We still took the walk though," he said, before digging into his food. "And we sat on mom's bench." He brushed the back of his hand against his mouth.

Will scraped back his chair on the tiles, taking his empty dish to the counter. He didn't reply for a moment so the quiet lingered, like it always did at the mention of their mother. It was almost like their private way of remembering her: not speaking for a second.

"I told her mom would have liked her," Jay spoke again, a small grin appearing when he noticed Will roll his eyes.

"Somehow I get the impression that you do too," Will replied, walking back over to join him. "I take it you're seeing her again?"

Jay nodded, his attention focused on emptying his dish free from food. He knew, if Will saw the look on his face at the mention of her, there would be endless teasing. Because that was something that brothers didn't grow out of. Will and Jay would be the victim of each other's jokes for the rest of their lives.

"And you're taking her on a proper date this time? One that doesn't involve sitting in the dark when it's freezing-"

"It was romantic!" Jay protested, though he didn't believe it himself. It hadn't been the most conventional of evenings, certainly not the kind of "first date" he'd really wanted to take her on.

"While you sat…on mom's memorial," Will pulled a face. "A little morbid, don't you think?"

"No actually I don't," Jay put down his eating utensil with a thud and turned towards Will. His older brother's eyebrows were raised at his outburst. Jay's shoulders tenses as he leaned against the back of the chair. His fists clenched, then unclenched, on the table top. "That's gonna be the closest any girl we meet is gonna get to her," he gulped. "You realize that, don't you? She's never gonna be there for when we-"

"Of course I fucking realize Jay!" Will exclaimed his reply, but somehow without sounding too aggressive. He knew how it was between the two of them when either- or both- were riled up. "And I know how much it sucks," his tone was gentle and his hand patted Jay's shoulder sympathetically. "But there's not a lot we can do about it, is there?"

"And there's no point in it making us argue," Jay agreed. He rubbed his palms together, before pushing back his own chair. "I'm gonna head to bed," he said, knowing his work load was bound to be rough. And _long_. The sooner he didn't have to sleep on a couch… "I'll catch you in the morning."

"No you won't," Will yawned, a sign that he wouldn't be far after his brother to retire for the night. "I'm on the late shift tomorrow. I won't be getting outta bed until at least 10am," he laughed. "Night."

* * *

He woke up before his alarm the next morning so Jay showered, got as ready as he could for work before deciding to check up on his new home. He'd looked into deals with decorators, designers and those in technical fields but hadn't yet decided on who to pick. At his last place, the ex had been in charge of all that and he'd let her, having thought the décor wouldn't mean that much to him. It was just an apartment.

With this new place, he had free reign of everything. And that felt kinda dangerous.

Jay got to Park Avenue just as the sun was coming up. He parked up in the free space outside the house, killing the engine. He reached for his key and started up the driveway.

The building still excited him. The prospect that he was gonna be living here soon. Jay wandered aimlessly around the ground floor. These were the walls that were gonna see him grow old. That meant he _had_ to make the right choice about the place.

He was still sauntering around his rooms when he felt the vibration of his cell. Jay's screen lit up with a message from the Sergeant, reminding him to check in with his CI's about a drugs bust that was going down.

When he left his new home though, Jay found that it was not the direction he was headed. Instead, his subconscious took him a different route until he'd passed a Starbucks and ended up outside the very building he'd been yesterday.

The door was semi-hinged open so Jay helped himself into the lobby. It was pretty quiet, unsurprising for how early it was, so he figured getting seen right away.

She was already in her office, hidden temporarily by her closet door. Jay didn't knock but instead looked on as she took a seat at her desk, shrugged off her suit jacket and leaned her chin on her fist. It was almost a shame to disrupt the start of her working day. _Almost._

Jay tapped lightly on the glass and she looked up, sceptically, apparently not expecting anybody this early in the morning. He manoeuvred her door open with an elbow.

"Jay," her cheerful tone rang in his ears. "What are you doing here?"

"I think there's a leak in the house," he struggled to keep up his act. "I was wondering if you could-"

"Oh shit!" Erin's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I hate to tell you, but you signed that contract. J&J don't have anything to do with that house any longer." At her pause, Jay burst out laughing and she frowned. "What's so funny?"

Then Jay walked further into the room, producing the beverages he'd picked up at the coffee chain. "That was a pathetic excuse to come over here, but I didn't realize just _how_ pathetic it sounded," he put down a coffee in front of her before opening a palm and slamming it against his forehead. An actual 'face-palm' as such.

To his relief, she found it funny too, a giggle erupting from the back of her throat. "So," the realtor picked up the latte in front of her and sipped. "No leak?"

"No," he confessed, thankful for her light-hearted reaction. "But I did owe you a coffee."

"You did," Erin blushed slightly, attempting to disguise it as she let her curls fall over her face. She shuffled closer to her desk, both of her elbows resting on the desktop. "How are you getting on with the house?"

Jay hummed. _Had it really only been yesterday that he'd signed the contract?_ She made it sound as though he would be moving in next week. _Which was fairly wishful thinking_ he thought.

"Honestly? I don't know where to start. Between working at the District, working on patrol and any undercover I get and getting the house prepared for me to move into… I don't know how I'm going to have time for anything else."

She looked taken aback at his comment.

Jay smiled at what he'd presumed she was thinking. "You can't tell me you think you're included in that," his smile transformed into a chuckle when he noticed her shy smirk. "You're certainly not just anything else," he almost whispered it. Jay took a step backwards, knowing she would have work to do. It hadn't been his intention to disturb her hard work ethic. "I'll see you Friday." He meant it as a reminder but it came out sterner than he'd anticipated. And half of him meant it that way: given that he didn't want her to bail out.

"Mhm," she nodded. "Where are we going?"

"I'm not telling you that," he said childishly, tapping his nose. Jay grinned at her reaction, knowing the numerous amounts of things she thought she would need to know before their date. What time she should expect to see him, where he planned on taking her, what she should plan on wearing, etc.

Erin opened her mouth to protest such things, but him leaning close to her desk made her lips clamp together. She gulped, taking in a breath of the same cologne that was forever embedded in his hooded jacket she'd borrowed.

"I'm taking you on a date Erin," he spoke slowly, the end consonant of her name lingering on his lips. "Make of that what you will."

 **A/N: I'll be on vacation for the next three weeks so please bare with me for the next instalment. Hopefully this chapter can see you guys through until then.**

 **Please Review!**


	8. I Don't Wanna Talk About Kate

Erin chewed against the top of her pen and continued staring at the computer screen, feeling her eyes going fuzzy. That was no surprise: the amount of time she'd spent looking at the monitor this week was crazy. With the new week, Erin had received several new clients, some of which had actually requested her skills personally to find them a home. Obviously she was flattered, but sometimes weeks like this one really got to her.

She looked down at the list in front of her, realizing all but one were crossed off. Erin grinned to herself: one to go on a Friday morning…she deserved credit if she managed to book in some house viewings or a potential property. And that could mean an early cut-out, giving her extra time to prepare for tonight.

The prospect of which she'd been thinking about every day. He hadn't told her much about it, but the way he'd said 'date' got her thinking she was in for something. She'd been thinking about tonight for just the right amount, not so much that it was affecting her work ethic. But enough to make her feel excitement. Everybody had been right with their views: it _had_ been time to deflect away from her work client rule. Especially since Erin couldn't actually remember the last time she was so intrigued by somebody. There were things she still wanted to figure out about Jay.

A shadow appeared outside her office door followed by a tap against the glass. Erin groaned: she knew, without looking, who it was by the particular knock. She didn't understand why he was knocking anyway, it would only be another moment until…

"Erin!" Mitch bounded into her office with force. His impact caused the door to loudly bang against the wall, which he chose to ignore. He took up the empty seat opposite Erin. "How is my best employee today?"

"I'm good," her attention half-remained on her computer monitor, not wanting to get distracted from the last tasks she had to do today. When her boss didn't say anything back, she swivelled position to face him. "Can I help you with something?"

"It's good to see you're still working so hard," Mitch laughed and relaxed his stance when he was seated. "How many clients did I give you this week again?"

"Four," Erin replied, holding up the same amount of fingers.

"And how many of those have you had house viewings for?"

"Three-" she began her answer before being interrupted by the handset she kept on her desk. Erin frowned then picked it up, starting with her usual greeting. She grinned when she realized what it was, then gently returned the handset. "Make that four," she smirked, ensuring Mitch could see it.

"Amazing," Mitch's fist curled into a ball in triumph. "Although I didn't expect anything less from you Erin," his eyes narrowed as he looked at her. "You are good at your job, you know," he continued, speaking words that she already knew to be true. "…which is why I'm throwing a party tonight."

Mitch stopped abruptly, obviously expecting Erin to be enthusiastic. Instead she nodded, her top lip clamping over the lower to stop herself laughing; Mitch would hate her finding this a joke.

"It'll just be the usual guests," Mitch continued. "I was thinking I could throw in some of that cocktail I know you love," one of his eyes slid closed in an attempt to wink at her.

The move did nothing but make her cringe. It was no secret that her boss knew how to throw a good party: the amount of money he had helped with that. There were practically no limits to what he could buy.

She could recall the cocktail thing he was talking about. At one of his previous parties, he'd conjured up something that was made of several different types of spirits. But it had tasted good, and she'd drunk a _hella_ lot of it. The very thought of that night made her cringe again.

"I can't," she shrugged, not wanting to offer him any more detail. Her personal life was none of his business. "I'm busy tonight."

"Oh?" her answer had evidently caught him by surprise. Mitch wasn't accustomed to his workers turning him down. His head hung low for a minute, an attempt to hide his reaction from her. "You're sure? I've invited only the best employees-"

"I'm flattered…really," Erin struggled to not roll her eyes. She hated to turn down a party- especially after a heavy week- but if she was about to attend one, she wanted to let her hair down out of her boss's sight. Plus, she had a _better_ offer. "But I won't be there this time."

Mitch clicked his tongue and raised his eyebrows. Erin was the only employee that had turned down his offer but the only one he really wanted there. Clearly she had different ideas.

"Alright then," he shrugged, pushing himself out of the lounger to leave. "Enjoy your weekend," he turned back towards her with a force so Erin couldn't tell if his comment was serious. Then he was gone and Erin gawped at the doorway where he'd exited in a whirlwind, leaving the entrance to her workspace ajar.

" _Asshole_ ," she cursed to herself, making it barely audible in case he was still lurking. Mitch had a habit of interrupting her at the worst of times, coming into her office to make pointless conversation when she was making progress. And today he'd succeeded in making her feel like shit because she didn't want to attend his lavish party.

Or rather, she couldn't. That specific thought made her feel better. She couldn't go because she had a date.

Erin released the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding and turned her attention back onto her monitor. The small digits in the bottom corner told her it was well after lunchtime. As if on cue to that, her stomach let out a grumble. She laughed at the comical sound of it before locking the monitor with her passcode and walking the hallway to their office kitchen. Several employees already occupied the area but there were only two familiar faces in there she cared about.

"We were beginning to wonder if you were actually gonna eat today," Joe laughed, taking a bite from his sandwich.

"He's right," Nancy agreed, speaking from behind her coffee mug, "Seriously Erin, we walked passed your office earlier. It's like you're in your own little world," she set down the cup and mimicked Erin sitting at her work desk, typing furiously with one hand and talking on the phone with the other. "How many clients did you get this week?"

"Four," she said, feeling like she'd already had this conversation today.

"…and how many of those have you clocked house viewings for?" Joe winked. "I'll take a wild guess and say…four?"

Erin would have slapped him for being rude if he wasn't a good friend. "Maybe," she reached for her own lunch from the refrigerator. "Mitch stopped by before."

Her friends looked at each other. "Yeah we know," Nancy said. "He invited us to the party tonight. Are you going?"

As Erin shook her head, Joe turned towards her, a put-on look of shock on his face. "Wait, you're not? I bet that was bad news for Mr Boss Man."

Erin laughed then, knowing he was right. Mitch's expression had been unreadable as he'd left her office. But he hadn't offered a goodbye or anything which made her think he was pissed.

"Well I told him I wasn't going," Erin shrugged, hoping they wouldn't ask more questions. But of _course_ they were gonna. She averted her eyes to her sushi box so not to make eye contact with them. She definitely wasn't good at lying.

"But why?" Nancy questioned. "Our boss can be a dick sometimes but we can't deny he knows how to throw a party. It'll be fun if we're all there. Why aren't you coming?"

"I'm headed out," Erin said plainly, with little expression on her face. Letting Joe and Nancy in on her plans for the evening would cause them to tease her, probably even more than Kate did.

"Oh, hot date?" Joe joked, digging loudly into a packet of chips.

Erin unscrewed the lid of her water bottle and drank, for a longer moment than she needed to. She played coy when she was finished, hiding her top lip beneath her teeth.

"Wait," Nancy commented when she didn't say anything. " _Do you_?" her jaw dropped an inch lower. "Oh my God, who is it?" she asked excitedly.

"Shh!" Erin told them, stepping forward so they were huddled together.

"Oh come on honey," Joe laughed. "It's not like the others in here are bothered about your love life, like we are." He rubbed his hands together in cunning fashion. "Don't be a bore, who's the lucky guy?"

Nancy spoke again before Erin got the chance to. "I'm betting on that Jay guy, right? Am I correct?" she wiggled her eyebrows.

The flash of color that tinted Erin's cheeks told her as much. Even before Erin confirmed Nancy's suspicions with a nod.

"Wait, who?" Joe asked, his grin spreading as Nancy reminded him. "Oh, the hot client? Dang Linds," he nudged her shoulder playfully.

"I knew something would happen between you two," Nancy said. "Where are you going?"

"I don't know," Erin replied, truthfully. "He didn't tell me."

"Exciting!"

"Ooh, intriguing."

"Yeah," she agreed. "So I should probably get my work done and cut out earlier so I have time to get ready."

"Maybe a good idea," Joe laughed. "What are you gonna wear?"

"I haven't decided yet," Erin said quietly. She knew half of the girls she worked with, or was friends with, would have an outfit picked out for at least a week. She, on the other hand, had a few hours. "Kate said she would help me."

Erin finished the conversation with her colleagues and wandered back to her office. By the time she sat again in front of her computer, she wasn't in the mood to work. It was pretty good that she'd had a productive morning- week even- so technically she didn't have to do anything else today. _It's still too early to cut out though_ she pondered.

To occupy herself for the next hour or so, Erin checked her mail and read through reviews that had been left for the business. Nothing but praise for her work ethic, which was always good to see.

Her curiosity at reading the words led to an hour passing by and Erin took that fact as a sign she could leave. She logged herself out of the system and gathered here purse and jacket together before heading to her car. Because she left early, there was little traffic so she reached home in good time. It meant she had the time to get ready properly- then maybe freak out a little- before she was picked up.

"Kate?" she seeked out her roommate as soon as she'd opened the door and stepped into the hallway. Kate had promised- like all good friends should- to prepare Erin for her date. She walked through into the kitchen. "Kate?" she repeated.

The silence in the room told her that Kate wasn't home. If she had been, Erin would probably be seeing her craft stuff lying around. But she frowned, realizing she could see the table and it was free from Kate's belongings.

Erin turned towards the refrigerator, her mind persuading her that she needed a glass of wine whilst she was getting ready. You know, half to deal with the stress of her week, half for…what? _Nerves_? She couldn't decide if she was full of nerves or excitement. Perhaps it was a concoction of both.

Before she pulled open the door, Erin noticed the colorful decorative post-it that was stuck on the front. She pulled it free and read it.

 _Hey roomie! Dan's taken me to his parents for the weekend. You can thank me later_

Accompanied with a drawn-on wink face. Erin knew what she was getting at, it meant she had the place to herself for a few days. Kate had to have done this on purpose.

But still… _thank her_? Erin pulled free the bottle of wine from its cooling place. She was tempted to scream. Kate had promised to be here to help her prepare for later. She was about to pull out her cell phone to curse at her roommate when she noticed another post-it behind the first. Kate's message continued on a further two pages.

 _Okay I'm totally sorry I'm not there to help u get ready! But u don't need me!_

 _Yes I fucking do_ thought Erin _you need to tell me what to wear._ She continued reading, a small smirk turning the corners of her mouth at the fact that Kate knew her so well:

 _But I know u think u need me there to help you. Outfit choices 1 and 2 are laid out on my bed. If u know me at all though, u should already know what I think u should wear. Enjoy your night!_

Her friend had signed off with another suggestive smiler and then her initial, followed by an "x".

Erin pushed the note onto the counter and found a wine glass from one of their cabinet. She poured a generous helping of the liquid before returning the bottle.

"You're an ass, Kate," she said to nobody before turning on her heel and making her way to her bedroom. Although she would have appreciated Kate's input on her outfit, it was kinda nice to have the apartment to herself. She turned on the radio quietly before heading for the shower. The hot water that dripped down on her seemed to physically relax the tension that had built inside her sine Monday. By the time she'd washed, Erin swore she even felt giddy at the thought of tonight.

Wrapped in her bath robe, Erin padded the hallway along to the other bedroom. Kate usually hated other people in her private space- and Erin thought of irony that her roommate would come into her bathroom so often, when she preferred people to ask permission into her room. But it was in Kate's character and, in this instance, she'd given Erin the go-ahead to check out her bedroom.

Her friend had positioned two outfit choices on the bed, a combination of clothes they both owned. _Oh, so Kate had been in her bedroom too…no change there._

Erin got to the centre of the room and studied what Kate had put together.

The first was Kate's cami, Erin's pants, Kate's shoes and Erin's purse. The second was Kate's (stupidly lacy and exposed) bra-let and skirt, Erin's shoes and jewellery pieces that belonged to both of them.

Erin chewed on her lip. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to slap Kate or hug her. There were elements of each outfit that Erin didn't like and Kate had _not_ done that by accident. The pants of the first didn't look dissimilar to what she wore to work daily and the bra-let of the second definitely resembled underwear. Not something she would go for. Especially when she didn't know where she was going.

Because Kate had made her feelings quite clear: in her opinion, Erin shouldn't wear either of these. And Erin knew exactly what she was referring to. Returning to her own bedroom, she took a quick gulp of her liquid courage and threw open her closet.

It didn't take her long to find it, because it hadn't been out of the closet before, hiding in the furthest corner. Underneath a covering. She'd bought it out of the blue, not even having a plan to wear it. It definitely wasn't something she would usually go for. Erin had been with Kate when she'd bought it. _Keep it for a special occasion_ her roommate had told her.

Erin pulled it from the hanging position and peeled away the cover. Maybe she could define tonight as a special occasion? Even given the fact she hadn't a clue where she was going. _Would it even be appropriate to wear?_ She laughed a bit: Jay was picking her up at 7pm, they would hardly be going rock climbing.

She spent her next half hour in the bathroom, fixing up her face. It felt strange that there were no interruptions; Kate would be on her tenth question by now if she were home. She liked the quiet if she thought about it though. She hardly caked her face in make-up but tonight she applied more than she usually wore for work.

The dress was the last thing Erin put on. A black strapless that was sure to make an impression. Not wanting to crease it- or spill wine onto it- Erin gathered together a purse and shoes that looked elegant but were also moderately comfortable. She couldn't take her sneakers with her this time.

At 6:50, the tiniest amount of wine remained in the bottle of her glass. Erin walked the length of the apartment towards the kitchen, draining the rest of it. She touched the glass down against the counter and smoothed out the silk material of what she was wearing.

It was only starting to get dark and Erin stared out of the window. The remaining ten minutes seemed to take a lifetime to pass by. She was still distracted when her cell phone started vibrating.

"Hey Erin," he answered when she picked up. "I'm here."

For a second, she was confused as to why he was calling. Then she remembered she hadn't told him exactly which apartment was hers. And he couldn't get in the shared main entrance anyway. Erin glanced towards the view downstairs: Jay had pulled up and got out of his Jeep.

She noticed his attire: light jeans with a button-up black shirt that wasn't _actually_ buttoned up a whole lot. Smart shoes. Erin gulped away the small lump of apprehension from her throat: clearly they were on the same level with the dress code.

"I'm coming," Erin smiled into the phone and made her way to the apartment door, turning off lights behind her. She balanced the purse beneath her arm and locked up the apartment. Her eyes adjusted to the lack of light in the street and she scanned the area in front of Jay's car.

"Wow," his voice startled her and she turned to see him leaning casually against the wall. Her slight jump made him laugh and he started walking towards her, a grin tugging one side of his mouth higher. "Shall we?" Without warning, he touched his lips against her cheek and offered her an arm. Erin took it gladly, grinning stupidly as he opened the passenger door before walking around to the other side.

"You look beautiful," Jay said quietly before he put the car in drive.

Erin looked to her lap, her hair falling across her face. The burning of her cheeks made her thankful it was dark.

"Oh I forgot," the Detective laughed, noticing her movement. "Not good at taking those compliments, are you?" he teased.

"Hey I'm working on it," she replied, her face coming back up to meet his gaze. "But it does mean a lot coming from you."

"Of course," Jay's eyes turned back to the road, though it seemed like they didn't really want to. "I hope you're hungry."

"I could eat," Erin replied, thinking that all she'd had today was breakfast and her small sushi box. She was playing it down: she was _starving_.

"That's good," he continued. "We're almost there anyway."

"Already?" Erin turned slightly towards him. He'd rolled down the window on his side a little so the breeze caught in both their hair.

"Yeah," Jay replied. "I figured you wouldn't wanna spend half the night in the car," a laugh escaped him. Erin watched his hands work the driving wheel. "It's just around this corner," he had time to say before he killed the engine.

Erin looked on as he got out of the car and made his way again to her side, opening the door. The building in front of them looked just as serene as the coffee place he'd taken her to. But, unlike that, this place was open. The lights dotted around the windows told her that much.

"This is my favorite Italian place," Jay told her, guiding her towards the entrance. "So I kinda hope you like it."

"I'm always down for Italian food," she said and meant it, her mouth almost watering at the thought. "I've actually heard of this place. Isn't this the one that's about impossible to get into?"

"It's not when you have your contacts," he practically whispered as he held the door open for her. Inside, his grip fell to her fingers and he pulled her through a sea of people. When they came to the bar area, Jay leaned over and spoke to a man behind it. The stranger smiled, nodded and pointed to his left. Erin watched as Jay shook the guy's hand, without dropping hers from the other one, then turned back to her.

"What are you having to drink?"

Erin pondered. She'd already started on wine and if she chose to mix her liquor… _bad_ thing were bound to happen. Not to mention the sick feeling she'd experience in the morning.

Besides, wine was always a good option to accompany Italian food. She leaned over the bar slightly, trying to figure out what they had. The coolers behind there were full of exquisite-looking bottles.

Jay saw what she was looking at. "Can we get a bottle of Coastal Pinot Noir brought over please?"

"That's no trouble Mr Halstead, right away," the bar guy again motioned away from the crowds.

Jay tugged on Erin's arm, just enough to pull her through the crowded area. It felt as though, whilst they'd been deciding what alcohol to dine with, the restaurant had doubled in popularity. Meaning Erin was extra curious as to how Jay had bagged them a reservation.

 _And a pretty good reservation in fact_ she thought, as they reached the furthest secluded booth inside. It was like their own private area, away from everybody and the bustle of the bar.

"Mr Halstead?" Erin comments with her eyebrows raised once she'd sat down, echoing the words of the barman. "I take it you're a regular?"

"Guilty," her date laughed, dropping his gaze to look upon the table. "You could say that. Let's just say that I'd never struggle to get a seat in this place."

His answer was cryptic. Erin narrowed her eyes at him and when Jay looked back up, he noticed.

Jay shifted his position so he was leaning towards her across the table. Not that he needed to: this particular booth made it seem like they were the only two there.

"Okay," he started. "That guy behind the bar, his name is Romeo. Without him knowing, a couple of his employee's set up a drug cartel behind his back. We basically set them up so they were caught out but so Romeo could continue to keep his popular restaurant. Said I could dine here anytime…but the food in here is so good I like to keep it for _special occasions_ ," his smirk returned, showing Erin the upper row of his pearly white teeth.

"I see," she replied shyly, taking in his anecdote. She got the picture that he'd told her in confidence, not that she was about to go spreading rumors. Erin also liked that the Detective was so truthful with her, even about work, which he probably wasn't supposed to tell her.

They were interrupted then, when somebody who wasn't Romeo brought over a bottle of wine along with two menus. He stayed for a moment to reel off the special dishes from memory before leaving them alone again.

Erin opened the menu, studying the contents. She gulped: there were no price lists accompanying the dishes which furthermore told her just how fine a restaurant they were in. Something told her she wouldn't have to worry about that though.

"What are you feeling?" Jay asked her a couple of seconds later, the top half of his face appearing in her view over his menu.

"The alfredo sounds good," her eyes had just reached it but the mixture of ingredients jumped out at her right away.

"It is," he laughed, confirming he'd sampled it already. "So you're ready to order?"

Erin nodded her head to tell him she was and she watched him summon the attention of their server so they could request their food.

"The alfredo please," she ordered first and handed back her menu.

"…and I'll take the linguine," Jay spoke after her and then watched their waiter walk away. He took the bottle of wine into his grip and poured them both even glasses. "So…" he pushed Erin's glass back towards her. "How has your week been?"

She thought for a second about lying to him, not wanting to dampen the mood of their date. "Not the greatest," Erin picked up her wine glass and swirled around the liquid. "Mitch gave me a heavy workload and he's been more of an ass than usual…if that's possible," she averted her eyes and rolled them. Erin immediately regretted telling him, not wanting her boss at the forefront of their conversation tonight.

"Damn," there was genuine sympathy in his voice. Jay took a sip of his own drink, thumped it back onto the table. Then he chewed the inside of his lip, winking subtly. "You know, the offer still stands if you want me to do something about him," he said.

Erin shook her head, her fingers distracted by the spine of her glass. "I don't doubt that would be good to see," her mind wandered for a second at the thought of him kicking ass. "But I don't want you to get involved," she said truthfully.

"Noted," Jay nodded. Both of his hands rested against the table. "But you've never thought about leaving?"

She shook her head. "I can't. My job is the only thing I'm good at," she laughed.

"I'm pretty sure that's not true," his hand worked its way across the length of the table and he reached for one of hers. "That's kinda not what I meant though. I mean, I _know_ how good you are at your job. If it wasn't for you, I'd probably be sleeping on Will's couch for the next few months." Jay paused, using his free hand to reach again for his glass.

Erin couldn't hide the blush of her cheeks this time as he subtly complimented her. Apparently it was something she was gonna have to get used too, considering he'd done it twice tonight already. "Then what did you mean?"

"You've never thought about…being a realtor on your own?"

She was taken aback by what he said. She'd obviously thought about it, but the pressure…the effort…not to mention the money she would have to put up initially. "I can't lie and say I've never dreamt of it," her eyes closed temporarily as she imagined a world where she was boss and Mitch ceased to exist. Where she would probably put herself under far less pressure. She snapped back to reality. "But it's not the right move right now," she confessed, keeping her eyes focussed on their intertwined hands. "Maybe one day," she added.

Jay opened his mouth to respond but his answer was interrupted by the arrival of two waiters this time, bringing over their dinner. The sudden movement caused their hands to jump apart as the dishes were placed in front of them. As soon as they were left again once more, Jay lifted his glass and tilted his head, a signal for his date to do the same.

Erin looked on as their drinks clinked together before starting on her food. It only took one mouthful to tell her she'd made the right decision. It was better than any pasta she'd had before.

"Good, huh?" Jay spoke between mouthfuls, finding it amusing just how much Erin was enjoying her food.

"Really good," Erin nodded, grinning at the same time. She washed down her mouthful with a swig of red wine, which was going down far too easily.

"Obviously I didn't wanna take you to any old restaurant for our first date Erin," he said under his breath. "I had to bring you somewhere with good food."

"And you did," Erin smiled, putting down her cutlery as she finished eating.

"Dare I ask if you have room for dessert?" he'd finished his own pasta at the same time and thrown his napkin into the dish.

"I definitely do not," she responded with a small giggle, incapable of managing anything more. Though she'd eaten just the right amount, Erin hoped the feeling of being full would wear off soon. She wanted- needed- the evening to continue, without her having to cut it short.

"I'm with you there," Jay laughed, relaxing back in his side of the booth. He emptied their shared bottle of the last of its contents before forgetting about the empty container. He stood up abruptly, motioning for Erin to take his hand. "Come with me."

Instead of heading back in the direction towards the bar, Jay led her towards another door. Erin looked around her: they'd stepped outside into the secluded patio area, donned with wicker tables and fairy lights. Jay had set his sights on a vacant one and guided them both towards it. They weren't alone this time but she didn't care at this point, it wasn't as though the other occupants would bother her.

They occupied individual seats but Jay pulled his close so Erin could almost feel the warmth radiating from his body.

"Are you cold?" he checked up on her. "They have heaters-"

Surprisingly, she wasn't. "I'm good," Erin affirmed, taking a glance at the others around her. Suddenly she felt thankful for the outfit choice she'd made, the people occupying this area were dressed to the nines too.

Erin shifted her legs to not crease the dress material and one of Jay's hands lay against her lap. He squeezed her knee, the action causing her first shiver.

"Tell me if you feel the chill," the wind, or the wine, made Jay's voice sounds huskier.

"I will," Erin turned towards him. The lights that twinkled illuminated his face to look like it was glowing. _Fuck, she'd never been more attracted to him_. "How are you getting on with the house?" she was inquisitive, genuinely curious.

"Yeah I think it's going good," he said humbly. Jay turned away for a moment, used hand gestures to order another bottle of wine before focussing again on his date. "I've started ordering the furniture. So far I have a mattress and a cooker." Jay paused for a moment to admire the laughter he got in return. "Pretty pumped about the mattress, cause I don't think I can sleep on that couch for much longer," he rubbed his neck, grinning. "I'd say I'm gonna be loving there very soon, given that I don't have to worry about installing a bathroom and stuff."

"Hey, that's great!" Erin could only imagine how uncomfortable his nights were.

"It is," his eyes wandered as their second bottle was brought over. A tedious laugh escaped him. "I guess I'm picking up my car in the morning then."

"Oh so responsible," Erin teased, her shoulder now nestled in the dint beneath his shoulder. She picked up the open wine and shot the Detective a look, a sultry one over her shoulder. "How about we take this to go?"

Jay swallowed so loud she could hear it. He looked around quickly before leaning towards Erin and kissing her bare shoulder. "I don't have anywhere to take you," he whispered. "The house only has a mattress and I'm not even sure if the heating works yet and-"

One hand still on the bottle, she silenced him by tracing her index finger along the line of his lips. "But I do," she reached to retrieve bills from her purse, but Jay's hand stopped her.

"Don't even think about it," he manoeuvred a hand into his jeans and pulled out his wallet. "I'll be back in a minute, I'll get them to call us a cab," he said it all under one hot breath. He disappeared briefly and Erin looked on in that direction, running a hand through her curls.

She didn't have the faintest clue what the hell had made her so ballsy. _Was it the wine?_ Erin didn't even think she'd had that much of it until she felt the sudden rush when she stood up.

" _Shit_ ," she cussed under her breath, tucking the chair beneath the table. The garden area didn't seem to be an open exit route but she didn't wanna fight her way back to the bar either. So she leaned against a post and waited for Jay outside. By the time he returned, she felt less drunk but still tipsy. Then she remembered her obvious head-start on Jay, having had a rather generous helping of wine before she left.

"Cab's here," his return made her jump, something that he seemed to have a habit of doing tonight. He'd whispered super close to her ear in order for her to hear over the outside crowd. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.

The look on Jay's face told her he was just as eager as her to leave. To get back to her place. To…

Jay led her back in the direction of the restaurant entrance, glancing back a few times through the busy crowd. She was practically running behind him, he seemed in such a rush. He threw open the sliding door of the cab, climbing in after her. Erin reeled off her address quickly then relaxed back next to her date.

When they arrived, it was her turn to lead the way. Jay hurled a few bills at the driver then was pulled impatiently from the cab and up a driveway. He stood behind Erin as she fumbled for her keys and let them in.

"Holy shit," he almost gasped as she allowed him into the hallway. He looked behind as she locked them into the apartment and gulped. "I mean…I expected you to have a nice place but this is amazing," Jay laughed then, aware of how geeky he sounded. She was a realtor after all: apparently she had an eye for interior design too.

Erin pulled him into the kitchen and he waited by the counter as she kicked off her shoes. The change in her height made him want to chuckle: she really looked _tiny._

As he took in the sight of her exquisite kitchen, his eyes fell upon the open bottle of wine on her island table. "Where do you keep the glasses?"

"Oh," she turned her back to him, reaching into one of the higher cabinets. "They're in here," Erin's dress shifted as she struggled, the back of it slipping out of place as he looked on.

"Let me," he hurried over, catching her between the counter and his torso. One of his hands grabbed for the glasses and the other rested in the small of her back. Jay hovered over the cabinet for a second, distracted. "Here," he peeled his hand away and Erin spun around, stealing the tumblers from his grip.

She tiptoed away from him, her dress trailing along the tiled floor. He watched her silently, biting down on his lip, the only noise in the room being the whirring sound of wine connecting with glass.

"You're not gonna stand there all night, are you?" she'd crashed into one of the stools, looking cheekily in his direction. With her left hand, she pushed a full glass away from her, summoning him over.

"I…uh, no," Jay pushed himself away from the counter. He sat in the chair nearest her and almost emptied the liquor in the first gulp. Being invited into her apartment, the thought had bypassed him that she didn't live alone. "Kate's not home tonight?"

Erin chuckled. She'd almost polished off her own wine and it had helped her decide _just_ how tipsy she was. Certainly not drunk enough to regret anything. "No she isn't," she stood up again, avoiding his gaze deliberately and instead gliding over to the faucet and dropping the wine glass in it. When she had, Erin slowly made her way back over to him, standing just out of his reach. She watched as the pupils of his eyes dilated, his tongue attempting to discreetly touch the corner of his mouth.

She closed the gap between them, her gaze beginning at his feet then gaining height to focus on his chest- and what she could see of it- before they locked eyes. "I don't wanna talk about Kate," she said quietly, raising one of her hands to rest against his chest. Unconsciously, she'd chosen the left side, feeling the thud of his heart beating beneath her fingers.

"Yeah me neither," Jay's reaction was instant: both of his arms enveloped her so she was locked between his legs. He crossed the upper limbs of his body behind her back so the weight of her was crushed against him. Erin wiggled just enough to bring her hands to cup his ace and then she was kissing him, with as much desire and need as she was feeling. Her eyes slid closed at the same time her mouth opened, giving him more access than he'd had the last time they'd embraced.

"Wait," after a minute, Jay pulled back slightly, though not loosening his hold of her. "Are you sure?" he looked deep into her eyes, craving an answer.

"Why?" Erin asked shyly, licking her lower lip. "Don't you want to?" she averted her gaze, staring over at the counter. Nervous of his reply.

"Erin," his palm opened to move her face back towards him. The tips of his fingers caressed her cheek. "I've wanted you from the moment I saw you," he spoke softly, his other hand playing with the material of her dress.

The only response he was given was a small but enthusiastic " _oh_ " from her throat. She motioned for him to stand and all but dragged him the length of the hallway. The sound of Jay's laughter vibrated off the walls. She pulled him through into the bedroom, shutting the door behind them.

In one swift move, Erin pushed against his shoulders so he was sitting on the edge of her bed. Her fingers were clumsy in their haste but she worked the buttons of his shift until they were all popped open. Jay wriggled out of it until he was top-half naked, looking on as she bit her lip and seemed to be checking him out. _Not_ subtly.

He continued looking as she spun around, her hands moving behind her to work the zipper on her outfit.

The smallest of groans escaped him. "Please," he stood up fast, as though his life depended on it, and closed his hands over hers. "Let me do that."

Erin obliged, cupping her curls into her hands so the zipper wouldn't get caught. Her head rolled in his direction when she felt the material fall away from her body replaced by his hot breath on her bare skin. She stood still momentarily as he circled her, eventually stopping a couple of inches in front of her.

She was standing awkwardly, knowing he was looking at her in only her panties, but it was like she was attempting to shield herself from view. Not that he could see a lot: the only light in the bedroom coming from a selection of tea lights that she left on the majority of the time.

Without thinking about it, Jay held onto her arms and moved them so they rested by her sides. Then he picked her up, she did indeed weigh next to nothing, and carried her the small distance to her bed. He waited a second for her comfort and used the time to hurriedly strip of his jeans.

Erin lay against the comforter, gasping as he balanced above her and littered kisses first on her jaw, collarbone, between her neat breasts before touching his lips to her own. He did it tenderly at first but then with so much desire that she let out a moan.

The noises erupting her throat only inspired him to keep going. Jay trailed a finger down the length of her stomach, below her navel until he reached the elastic of her underwear. As he reached them, more of his fingers joined in and Erin wiggled her legs so she was free of them. Jay threw the lacy item across the room before giving her his undivided attention. His hand pushed her legs apart until he had one of hers on either side of him. Jay marvelled in the fact she writhed beneath him, her fists gripping the comforter that she lay on.

He lost his fingers temporarily inside her and received a bunch of hot whimpers in return. Minutes later, she'd found the ability to come to life and threaded a hand through his hair before tugging just a little too hard on the strands.

" _Jay_ ," she managed to get his name out, though it sounded pretty strangled. "Now."

It was no secret that he was ready too, the bulging in the front of his boxers meant he had to manoeuvre out of them. They'd joined Erin's on the floor seconds later.

He kissed her once more before pushing into her, encouraged by the feeling of her hands clawing at his back.

"Jay!" she said again, more urgently. He took it as a sign to go faster, apparently a good move as her legs came to rest against his hipbone.

"Oh God," the next words left his mouth and his eyes were screwed shut as he came. "Fuck," through gritted teeth he spoke again, took a couple of breaths in an attempt to steady himself then crashed onto the mattress next to her.

"I'm…that was…" Erin ran a hand through her hair, the perspiration of her brow giving her hair a glitter.

"I know," Jay chuckled. She hadn't finished her sentence but he was fairly sure he agreed. He lay with one hand above his head and the other wrapped around her. Unable to leave her alone. The quiet was comfortable between them for a while before he felt her breathing falter and she threw his arm off her suddenly.

"Um," he hadn't meant for the first sound to be heard but it was. "What are you doing?"

Erin giggled, lifting her head away from the pillow and climbing onto all four limbs so she occupied the same position he had just been in. She kissed against his stomach muscles, extending a hand to stroke the inner area of his thigh, and higher. She didn't struggle to hear his sharp intake of breath.

"Oh, you didn't think we were finished, did you?" she purred, her curls ticking the skin of his chest, much to his delight. "Round two."

 **Please Review!**


	9. Getting To Know You

The Saturday morning sunlight woke Erin from slumber and she found herself still tangled in her bedsheets. Fighting her way out of them, she flipped onto her side and stretched, fully expecting the other side of her bed to be occupied. It wasn't. She frowned and lifted her upper body to balance on her elbows, scanning the room.

A smile spread across her face: her company couldn't have gone far. Unless he'd chosen to do so without his clothes, which were still where he'd stripped from then in the middle of her bedroom floor.

Erin made a satisfied noise and threw herself back against the pillows. _At least he hadn't left. He didn't seem like the type to up and leave anyway_ she thought, _especially given how well the date had gone._ Realizing they must have both fallen asleep naked, Erin unscrambled from her comforter and stood, grabbing the first items of clothing she came across. A tank top and a pair of shorts.

Unsurprisingly, her legs still felt like jello to walk on. Her thoughts flashed back to their time together last night: she hadn't expected it but yet didn't regret it. And it had been something pretty memorable. She wondered if it had been the same for him.

Erin's rational subconscious _did_ tell her there was one thing she had to do this morning, though. They hadn't exactly been careful. But at the time, it had been the last thing on her mind.

Her footsteps took her from the bedroom and along the hallway. Before she reached the kitchen, she could hear a quiet humming coming from the other side of the door. Erin shook her head lightly and giggled- _what a dork_ she thought.

The door was already ajar and she saw Jay occupying one of the stools at her kitchen counter. The low lull of the TV was on in the background. His gaze flitted between that and his cell phone, Erin watched for a minute as he scrolled through with his thumb.

"You should have woken me!" she pushed the door open until creating a big enough gap to fit through. She hated the idea that maybe he'd been up for hours before her, sat waiting to excuse himself but not wanting to be the guy who did that without saying anything. It surprised her also that she hadn't woken when he'd moved from beside her, she wasn't usually a heavy sleeper. Maybe that was a sign she'd needed the rest.

"I didn't want to," as soon as he heard her voice, Jay's head tilted in her direction.

Erin got the impression he'd come straight in here from the bedroom, judging from the fact he had a serious case of bed-head and was dressed only in his underpants. Weirdly, though, he had never looked more attractive.

Jay set down his phone and walked over to her, pulling her chin with his index finger and kissing her quick. "Good morning," he stepped back slightly and folded his arms across his naked chest. "How did you sleep?"

Erin shuffled her feet: the kitchen tiles were pretty cold beneath them. "Better than I have in a while," she admitted, truthfully. And it was true, although whether it was because of the wine, her heavy workload, the really great sex or purely having him beside her she didn't know.

A quick glance at the clock in the kitchen told her it was past 10am. Even on a regular weekend, she'd already have been up from breakfast and probably out for a run. So she'd slept well, sated. "How long have you been up?"

"About a half hour," Jay replied. He grinned at her. "I slept pretty good myself," he licked his lower lip then shrugged. "I was gonna make you breakfast or something but then I realized where I was… I don't know where anything is."

"You don't have to do that," Erin's head tipped to one side and she looked at him. Something she could do all day. As he walked back to preoccupy a seat again, turned away from her, she gasped. His back was littered with scratches, which she _knew_ had come from her. They criss-crossed his skin, the pinkness standing out against his tanned tone. "Oh my God, Jay," her hands flew to her mouth. "Your back-"

"Worth it," he shrugged, apparently not the slightest bit bothered about the new editions to his body. Though he joked, Jay saw that she was mortified. "Hey," his tone was reassuring. "Honestly, it's fine," he closed the space between them once more and pushed the curls on one side of her face behind her ear. "It's _fine_ ," he repeated, emphasizing, watching as her face relaxed a little. "Can I make you a coffee?"

"I should be the one doing that," Erin replied, watching as he already worked his way around the kitchen. He must have remembered where she got the wine glasses from last night. They were on her draining board. She was certain they hadn't bothered washing up last night so he must have done it this morning. _Had she found a domestic God?_ Erin continued looking on as Jay found the coffee jar and brewed her hot water.

"Actually," she moved from the doorway to stand with him at the counter, suddenly nervous. "I have to run out for five minutes."

"Okay," Jay's brow furrowed. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah I just," her gaze fell to the floor, unable to continue looking at him. "I need to run to the drug store," suddenly she felt like an awkward teen. Funnily enough, that was the probably the last time she'd needed to do this. "I didn't…we didn't…"

"Oh," Jay replied followed by a louder "Oh!" when he realized what she was getting at.

She was thankful that she didn't have to say anymore. "Did you want me to come with you?" his hand had frozen mid-air so she was glad she wasn't alone at feeling embarrassed.

Erin shook her head. She wanted it over quickly so she could get on with the rest of her day. "It's alright, I'll be back soon," her hand rested temporarily against his. "Can I get you anything?"

"Whatever you're feeling for breakfast," he insisted, refusing to take his eyes off her. "What's your meal of choice, Er?"

The shortening of her name was simple but nobody had done it before. And even the way he said the two letters, the way the sound rolled from his tongue, made her feel fuzzy. A weird sensation that she hadn't felt before.

"French toast?" it was a white lie, not usually what she'd go for but something she could totally go for this morning. And she was fairly sure she already had the elements for it in her apartment.

"I could go for that," he grinned, clearly hungry. "I'll start it," he offered, mimicking rubbing his hands together, in chef mode. "Show me how you work this," Jay signalled towards her cooking point, noticing how top of the range it looked.

"Promise me I won't come back to a burned-out apartment," Erin laughed as she reached for the sneakers she kept in the kitchen.

"I can't be making those kind of promises," the Detective teased, winking in her direction. "Hurry back," he said, watching as she headed out of the room.

His words made her want to. Erin left the door on the latch, knowing she wouldn't be long. The time of day it was meant she automatically wanted to jog to the drugstore. So she did, getting there in no time. It was practically on the doorstep of her apartment block anyway, awkward in this instance because she knew most of the staff. Erin found the appropriate aisle and picked up the small pink box.

She felt so awkward, having never been in this situation in her 20s. Apparently whatever feelings had flowed through her last night had meant she was irresponsible. Erin joined the people in the line, keeping her gaze low as she approached the server. To her relief, it seemed to be a new guy, probably feeling _just_ as awkward. She paid with her card and left, hurrying around the corner back to her apartment.

Jay was exactly where she'd left him, busy at the cooker. He looked at ease in her kitchen- a sight she could get used to.

"Oh hey, you're just in time," Jay spoke before turning around, having located where Erin kept her crockery. "Look, I didn't burn down your kitchen," he laughed, bringing two plates to the counter.

"Impressive," Erin giggled and kicked off her sneakers. She had to admit that whatever he'd knocked up smelt amazing. Exactly what she needed on an empty stomach.

"Did you…uh…get what you needed?" Jay hid half of his face with a coffee mug but managed to look at her. It gave Erin the impression he'd never been in this situation either.

"Yeah," she said quietly and produced the box. He'd already prepared her a coffee and she accompanied the pill with a mouthful of caffeine.

"Eat," Jay didn't dwell on the subject and Erin was glad of it. He joined her at the breakfast bar, taking a healthy mouthful of French toast. "I gotta be honest with you, I never imagined I'd be eating breakfast in your apartment the morning after a first date," he laughed nervously and scratched against the back of his neck.

"You think I did?" she said between mouthfuls, hugging her coffee. "I don't…I never do this," she insisted and his head shot towards her, listening. Erin realized what she was saying didn't exactly come out the way she'd wanted it to. "But with you it felt different."

Jay's features softened and he tilted his head. Erin swore his cheeks even reddened a little.

"Different?" he teased. "Keep talking."

"You know what I mean," she shrugged, not wanting to sound mushy. Not her style. "It wouldn't have happened if we hadn't wanted it to."

"Oh absolutely," he agreed, nodding confirmation. "I'll hedge my bets on it happening again."

Erin coughed the mouthful until it no longer clogged in her throat. His very forward answer caused her toast to wedge in her windpipe. She hadn't expected his reply but she liked it. After a reassuring swig of her coffee, she replied. "I'd say it's a pretty safe bet."

"Good to know," Jay was the first to finish his breakfast and discarded his dishes by her faucet. He stood in the centre of her kitchen, still dressed in only his pants, and gazed whilst she finished her first meal of the day.

"What are you looking at?" Erin studied him back, turning her attention away from her now empty dish.

"You." He uttered, taking away his hands from his hips and walking over to where she stood. "We spent all night together and I still feel like I don't know a lot about you," he paused, just long enough to hear her gulp. "And I want to…know more about you, I mean."

Erin spun her seat in his direction, surprised at just how close he stood. Close enough for her to run her fingers across his chest but she refrained from doing so. For now.

"What is it you'd like to know?" she offered, crossing her arms over her own chest.

"Tell me about your family," Jay moved to occupy the raised seat next to her, swivelling it so his knees were pressed against hers.

Erin's front teeth sank into her lower lip. It was a subject she hadn't even discussed at length with Kate.

Jay took note of her hesitation. "Hey," he began. "If you don't wanna-"

"It's not that," if Erin was honest with herself, the Detective was the first guy she actually wanted to talk about her past with. She stood abruptly, taking hold of his hand. "Not that," she repeated and pulled hard so he followed her, through into the lounge. "It's a long story so you may as well be comfortable."

"In that case, mind if I take a shower? I have all day to listen to you."

Erin laughed, positive that he would regret saying such a thing. Her weekend was her time to offload and her roommate usually took the brunt of it. She wasn't here though, today Jay would be the one listening.

"Sure," she said. "There's fresh towels in the linen closet," she added, watching him walk the length of her apartment. She didn't wanna insult his intelligence explaining to him how the shower worked. He'd be walking back her way if he couldn't figure it out. Erin settled into the couch, tucking her feet beneath her. Seconds later she heard running water and grinned: glad he's figured it out. When he reappeared soon after, he leaned against the doorframe. His hair still stood on its ends in places, though Erin saw it looked like he'd run a towel through it quickly.

"That shower," Jay cocked his head to one side. He'd dressed himself in last night's clothes; the now-creased shirt rolled up to his elbows. "…is something else," he chuckled and walked towards her, collapsing into the free space beside her.

Erin knew exactly what he was talking about, the shower in her en-suite being one of her favorite things about the apartment. "I know," she nodded, thinking about the numerous times she'd been hesitant to get out of it. "I think, if I'm remembering right, the shower in _your_ main bathroom looks the same."

"Wait, really?" he replied with enthusiasm, much to her amusement. "Damn, I hadn't noticed that." He shuffled closer, comfortably into her personal space, an arm spreading along the back of the couch. "I'm all ears, Erin."

"Short version or long version?" she shrugged, looking his way.

"I have all day," Jay's arm shifted slightly to stroke the skin of her forearm.

Erin took a breath. "My mom had be when she was real young. It didn't take her long to figure out she couldn't cope with a kid. But I guess she didn't make it look that way because I was never taken away from her. As soon as I turned 18, I was outta there. I wanted to go to college but I couldn't afford it," she exhaled, noticing how he was still listening intensely. She probably wasn't telling the tale he'd been expecting.

"When I landed my first realtor job, I realized how toxic our relationship was. So I cut her out of my life," she shrugged. "I guess I wasn't really sad about it because I never saw her as a mother."

Jay gulped. "And your dad?"

Erin shuffled position, tensing up a little. "I… I don't know my dad. There _was_ a guy in my life while I was growing up. Bunny, that's my mom, always had me convinced that he was my dad. It wasn't until I asked him when I was 16 that he told me the truth. He had always believed the same but he found proof we weren't actually related. I took the news badly at the time and-" she shook her head. "I… he's no longer in my life either."

Jay nodded and, by the time she'd finished talking, he was holding onto her hand.

"Were you an only child?"

Erin shook her head. "I have a half-brother. His name is Teddy. I've met up with him a few times but he stays off the radar. He travels a lot and I'm not even sure it's for legit reasons," she paused suddenly, remembering who she was having a conversation with. A _cop_.

If Jay understood what she was saying, he didn't acknowledge it. "You know," he ran his free hand through his hair. "One of the good things about being in the Intelligence unit is having access to all sorts of stuff," he spoke quietly, as though he knew he shouldn't be offering such deeds. "If you wanted help to find your father-"

The shake of her head was firm. After a minute, she vocalized her reluctance too. "No," she replied, finding herself leaning into him. "Jay, I've gone 28 years without knowing him, I don't need to know him now." She watched him nod. "I like my life where it is right now. I have a good job, I live in a nice place, I have great friends, I…" Somehow she wanted to include him in the list but didn't know how to. She didn't want him to back off because she'd said the wrong thing too early.

"Well my dad is a jackass," Jay spoke next, shrugging his shoulders. "Enough of a jackass to continue cheating on my mom when she got sick," he tore his eyes away from her, looking as though he was trapped in an angry memory. His free fist curled into a ball and the one holding Erin…did it tighten a little? She swore it did.

"Will is more forgiving than I am, he's met up with him a few times. But I could never get over what he did to mom. I don't have time for anybody who thinks it's okay to cheat," Jay realized how much his words echoed recent events in his own life.

Erin suddenly remembered why Jay had wanted to move in the first place. Something involving a cheating ex-girlfriend. She gulped, shifting position so she sat against his chest. "Cheating is never okay," she snuggled into his embrace, her head resting on him. "I'm sorry your dad is so shitty."

"Don't sweat it," Jay's mouth rested against her temple and he said the next thing into her hair. "I'm sorry you don't know yours."

"That's not your fault," she shrugged against him. "Somebody that doesn't bother finding me isn't worth knowing anyway."

"You know what, you're right," Jay pulled back so she swivelled position again to face him. "But I couldn't imagine why _anybody_ wouldn't wanna know you Erin. Because I certainly do."

"Mhm," Erin leaned forwards and kissed him, his words sending her into some sort of frenzy. She felt Jay's hands drop to her waist and fall back against the arm of the couch. When she sat back, he let out a long breath.

"I could probably sit here and kiss you all day," Jay laughed, brushing a hand against his lips.

"…but we probably shouldn't," Erin agreed, leaning instead against the couch and not him.

"Right," his voice was slightly pained. "I should probably change my clothes at least. Oh, and grab my car. I was thinking of going to do something on the house," he watched for her reaction, clearly reluctant for him to leave. "You, uh, wanna come?"

Her head shot up to his level. "Sure," she stood. "I'll give you a ride," she offered.

"Thank you," Jay rubbed her shoulder. "I'm gonna head to Will's for a quick sec and then I'll swing back and pick you up?" he repositioned his wrinkled shirt on his shoulders.

"Gives me time for my own shower," she giggled, thinking to herself that she hadn't had one this morning. _Gross_. "I'll just grab my jacket."

* * *

Once she'd returned from dropping him where he'd left the Jeep, Erin headed straight for the bathroom. The cool water was a contrast to the heat that seemed to be radiating from her skin. She lathered herself in soap and washed her hair, rinsing it thoroughly before stepping out and wrapping a towel around herself.

When she found herself back in the bedroom, the events of last night whirred around in her mind. She smiled shyly, giddily, to herself. At the corners of the bedsheets ripped from where they belonged. At the dress he'd peeled away from her that lay on the floor. At the lacy underwear flung to the opposite side of the room. Erin found herself giggling childishly as she tidied. Her eyes darted to where Jay had left his wallet on the floor. She placed it onto her vanity, spending her next half hour getting dressed.

The sound of her hairdryer prevented her from hearing anything else. Erin reached behind her to separate her curls. The sudden opening of her bedroom door almost caused her to topple backwards off her chair.

"You left the door on the latch," Jay almost scolded, speaking rather as a concerned Detective than the new guy she was dating. "I…I've shut it behind me."

"Really?" she turned his way, frowning. Erin never left the door open: although this was a good neighborhood, she preferred to be secure. The action was careless.

"Yup," he nodded, noticing her concern. "Hey, it's not a big deal. Lots of people do it. I just thought I would tell you," Jay's eyes fell on his wallet and he retrieved it, put it into his jeans pocket.

"I guess," she shrugged, putting it to the back of her mind. Erin put down her hair tools and faced him. Jay had changed out of last night's clothes and opted for a more casual outfit. Lighter jeans and a t-shirt. Erin gulped, thinking she had overlooked the muscles that now protruded from underneath it.

"You good to go?" he extended an arm in her direction, tugging her out of her seating position.

"I am," she told him and they left the bedroom, Erin closing the door behind them.

"So I didn't wanna bore you with house stuff," he laughed, having obviously been thinking about it when he'd left. "You deal with that all week."

"So what did you have in mind?" she asked, intrigued.

"I didn't get that far," Jay admitted. "What do you feel like? It's pretty nice out."

"I don't know," she said. In fairness, Erin would have been perfectly fine with paying his new place a visit: she was kinda intrigued to see how he was making it his own. Then she thought of something. "Would you say it's ice cream weather? We could always see if your café is open yet."

"We could," Jay agreed, heading for the door but glancing in her direction. He made it to the apartment entrance before her. As he got there, the vibrations started coming from his pocket.

Erin noticed he wasn't in a rush to answer it. "Hey, isn't that your cell phone?"

"Yup," he nodded, opening the door.

"Then don't you wanna answer it?"

"Not really," Jay laughed, watching as she followed him out to the car. She'd locked up the apartment and walked a step behind, in his shadow. "It's either gonna be work or it's gonna be my brother and I can't be bothered with either right now."

Erin giggled as he finished talking and rolled his eyes. She slid into his passenger side and pulled the door. "Okay, so you don't like to answer your cell phone? Noted," she smiled.

"Hey, I didn't say that!" Jay said playfully, squeezing her knee. "You wouldn't have to worry about that. Weekend time is _my_ time and I'm not having them intruding," he grinned, turning his attention to the road.

Erin looked out of the window. "Okay but…somebody could be being burgled."

"What?"

"I'm just saying," she fought to keep a poker face. "Somebody could be making an illegal trade off."

Jay chuckled. "Erin-"

"Somebody could be plotting a massacre-"

" _Hey_ ," his hand held her knee again, squeezing just hard enough for her to squeal out. "If they call again, I'll pick up. And I'll tell them where to go because I'm spending the day with you. Deal?"

Erin nodded and teased him with side-eye. "Deal."

"I guess it is a bit weird," he continued. "I hardly ever work weekends, unless it's overtime so maybe it was important."

She shot him a look. "Ya think? Maybe you're getting fired," she grinned.

"Please," Jay scoffed. "I'm the best Detective this city has ever had," he boasted, killing the engine. He joined in her laughter. "Oh look," his enthusiasm grew. "It's open!"

She studied his face as they both got out of Jay's car. The sun had appeared on their car ride to the café and it was almost like looking at him in a new light. She continued to sneak glances as Jay grabbed for her hand before they went in. It was during one of those flitting looks that Erin noticed the existence of a faint scar, tracing the line of the skin behind his ear. An indent of his skin that she hadn't noticed before. She knew automatically there would be a story behind it, already intrigued. She vowed to ask him about it later.

"…but I personally don't like it. I usually go for pistachio," he finished his sentence but Erin only caught the latter part of it, having drifted into her thoughts. Now he was looking at her, waiting for a response.

"Huh?" she cringed, knowing it was obvious she hadn't been listening.

"I…just tell me to shut up if I'm talking trash," Jay chuckled, licking the corner of his mouth.

"No, it's not that. I…" _I zoned out thinking about how attractive you are. How did you get that scar? Not the right time to ask._ "What did you say?" she squeezed his hand.

"I asked your go-to ice cream flavor," he said, pulling the door open, insisting she was first through it. "Ever since I was a kid, this place seems to know whatever I'm in the mood for-"

"Jay!" His sentence was interrupted by the appearance of a short, overweight woman. She ran out from behind the counter and threw her arms around the Detective. Jay being so tall meant the lady only came to just above his waist, her arms wrapped around his lower back. Erin witnessed the embrace: clearly these two knew each other well.

"Oh it's _so_ good to see you!" The old lady took a step away from Jay and looked up, her neck craning to see his face. "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten who I was-"

"Never Mrs Jensen," he insisted.

"Will comes in here all the time, but you? I had to rely on that brother of yours to tell me what you're up to these days. I take it you're still at the District?"

"Yes ma'am," Jay edged in an answer where he could.

The café owner eventually let go of him and his hand rushed behind him, scouting around until he found Erin's.

"And they didn't give you that promotion yet? My goodness, if it were up to me, I would-" the woman paused, watching as Jay made a move to hold Erin's hand. She grinned, waving at her. "Oh, how rude of me!" Suddenly she'd practically pushed Jay out of the way so she could look at his company. She looked at him from the corner of her eye. "So, _this_ is what you've been up to," Mrs Jensen winked at him before reaching for Erin's hand. "Who's this?"

Erin's gaze dropped temporarily to the floor. It didn't take her long to figure out this woman must own Jay's favorite café. That, plus the fact she and Jay seemed to know each other well, made her nervous. It was almost like meeting Jay's mom, even though that wasn't possible.

"This is Erin," Jay got there before her.

"It's nice to meet you Mrs Jensen," Erin recalled what Jay had called her.

"Please," the lady smiled, showing teeth stained by lipstick. "Call me Polly, no need for that _Mrs Jensen_ nonsense." She threw her hands into the air then clasped them together. "Now, what brings you two here? Did you come for ice cream?"

"There's nowhere else we would go for it Polly," Jay said, his eyes on Erin.

The statement earned him a cackle from the café owner. "Your usual spot is free then," she turned away from them, heading back towards the counter.

It didn't bypass Erin that Jay had already referred to them as a 'we'. She blushed, following in his direction towards the vacant booth.

"She didn't ask us what flavor we wanted," Erin realized as she sat down opposite him. "I'm guessing she already knows your order but-"

"She knows," Jay grinned, leaning his elbows on the table top. "She'll know yours too," he continued, watching Erin's confused expression. "Polly has this gift of knowing exactly what you want."

"Wait, really?" she was intrigued, her eyes diverting over to the movement at the counter. Polly soon headed to where they were sat, her hands full.

Laughter escaped the older woman as she set down the different flavors in front of them. "Pistachio for you," she put the first tub in front of Jay. "…and mint chocolate chip for you," she pushed the remaining one in front of Erin, smiled sweetly then left them to each other's company.

Erin's eyes widened as she walked away. "But that's…how did…"

"I told you, she knows," Jay repeated his words from before. "So mint choc chip, huh?" he said between mouthfuls.

"Only the best ice cream flavor there is," she grinned, scooping a chunk into her mouth. "Oh wow, this is incredible!" Erin spoke with enthusiasm because she meant it, it was delicious.

"Right?" Jay agreed with her, though he knew what she was saying to be true already. He wouldn't have taken her anywhere else. "I'm real glad it was open."

"Yup me too," Erin scooped out the last of her ice cream. She looked around her surroundings, watching Mrs Jensen as she busied herself with other customers. Erin nodded her head towards her. "She's a big fan of yours, huh?"

"More like the other way around," Jay laughed. "She's been like a second mom to me," his gaze too drifted to the older woman before falling on Erin again. "After mom died, it kinda meant even more. She did a lot for Will and I, she still does."

"She seems super sweet," Erin nodded; Jay had clearly known her since he was a kid. "What did she mean then, when she said she hadn't seen you in a while?"

"Because she hasn't," Jay admitted, sounding somewhat disappointed. He scratched the back of his head. "I meant it when I said this was a special place to me. Let's just say the last person I brought here…wasn't worth it."

"Got it," Erin replied, not even wanting to know more. "Well, I'm happy you brought me."

"Me too," Jay smirked, pushing his empty tub away from him. His mouth opened as if to speak again but the tone of his cell interrupted.

Erin saw a look wash over his face as he looked at the screen. "Answer it," she insisted, knowing it would be whoever had tried to contact him before. "Where is the bathroom?"

Jay pointed to his right and she left so he picked up the call. On the way back from the facilities, Erin passed the counter where all the flavors were kept.

"How was your ice cream?"

The voice made her jump and she spun to face Polly on the other side of the trolley. "It was great," she said truthfully, paying the woman the compliment she deserved. Erin was definitely better at giving them than receiving them. "Do you make it yourself?"

"Oh of course dear, I'm no fraud. None of this pre-made trash," her arms flailed in the air as she talked. Then Polly folded her arms across her large chest. "I think Will may have mentioned you the last time he was here," she winked and Erin felt uneasy. "He said his brother was hung up on somebody new. Although he definitely underplayed how pretty you are. But then again, I wouldn't expect Jay's girlfriend to be anything less than beautiful," she chuckled.

Erin swallowed, her palms suddenly sweaty. "His what...I'm not…"

Mrs Jensen raised her eyebrows. "Oh, like that is it? Forget I said anything," she finished their conversation and turned her attention back to her line of customers.

Erin made her way back to their table right as Jay seemed to be finishing his conversation. She slid back into her side, resting her elbows against the table. "So, work or your brother?"

She watched him avoiding eye contact. "Work," was his one word reply.

Erin gulped: his change in mood was obvious. Something had happened. "Is it bad?"

"It's only a tip-off for now," he said, his knees bouncing to knock the table. "But if it proves true…yeah, I'd say it's pretty bad."

The tone of his answers almost scared her. She knew Jay being a Cop meant they could be interrupted at any time. And she also knew, if things were really serious, then he couldn't disclose details. She didn't take another minute to realize that he was fighting not to look at her. "What do you have to do?"

"I'm dropping you home," his voice was authoritative and it made her want to listen. "Then I'm going into work."

She couldn't tell if he was pissed because their day was cut short or if it was because whatever he'd been told was serious. Erin had a horrible feeling it was the second option.

"I know you can't tell me but is there anything I can do?"

"Stay at home. Keep your cell phone on, Erin. Because if what I've just been told is true, it could affect the both of us."

 **Please Review!**


	10. Caught Out

_Stay at home. Keep your cell phone on._

Erin threw herself down again on the couch, her index finger clicking the remote to turn on the TV. Jay's words from yesterday still whirred around in her mind, she'd listened and barely left the apartment except to go and pick up take out for dinner. Her cell had been glued to her hand, but now it was Sunday noon and she hadn't heard anything further from the Detective.

She'd be lying if she said their last conversation hadn't scared her. Jay had left in such haste- bringing her back to the apartment, pulling her close to kiss her- speeding into the distance as she lingered in his sudden absence. It had caused Erin to attempt to think of _every_ possible way she and Jay could be connected… _how could they both be affected?_

During their short time together, Erin realized just how much she was revealing to him. A small lump wedged itself in her throat. Did this have something to do with her brother? His brother? Her roommate? Not knowing anything was causing Erin to conjure up a million scenarios in her mind, assuming the worst.

She tucked her feet beneath her and flicked aimlessly through the TV networks. Eventually she settled on Grey's Anatomy reruns, though her mind was far from caring about what was happening onscreen.

"Erin?" to her (slight) disappointment, the voice was female. _Kate._

"In here," she shouted from the lounge, hoping her roommate would come to her. Erin waited until Kate was in sight. "How was your weekend?"

"Yeah pretty good," Kate pushed her sunglasses off her face and dropped her purse. She sat on the edge of the couch next to Erin. "More to the point," she nudged Erin's arm. "How was yours?"

Erin knew she would be wanting details. She left out the details of last night for now. "Yeah good," she nodded, her gaze still on the TV.

"Excuse me," Kate waved a hand in front of Erin's face to get her attention. "You don't get to stop there. I said…how was your weekend?"

Erin smirked. "Like I say, it was good-"

Kate noticed her expression. "You wore the dress, didn't you?" A nod from Erin. "Oh my God, did you look hot? Of course you did," she answered her own question. "And…"

"And what?" Erin laughed. "He may or may not have come back here-"

Kate's eyes widened with excitement. "I knew it!" she threw a fist into the air. "See, I knew going to Dan's parents' place was a good idea," Kate moved to stand up.

"Yeah, thanks for that," Erin said.

"You're welcome," Kate said over her shoulder. "I'm gonna dump my stuff in my room. What are you doing today?" she asked before she left the room.

"Um, nothing," Erin shrugged. "What about you?"

"Honestly same…I'm pretty tired," Kate yawned, stretching a hand to cover her face. The movement caught Erin's attention: something causing light shadows to bounce off the walls.

"Kate," Erin's eyes narrowed. "What the _hell_ is that on your finger?"

"Oh, she notices!" Kate said sarcastically. "So this happened over the weekend-"

"Oh my god Katie!" Erin bounced off the couch. "Let me see!" She drew her attention to her roommate's left hand. "Why didn't you lead with this? When were you going to tell me? _Oh hi roomie, I'm going for a nap, by the way I'm engaged?!_ " Erin imitated, not really pissed but rather curious of Kate's behavior.

"I didn't wanna piss on your parade!" Kate laughed. "Something tells me _you_ had a great weekend. I kinda half expected Jay to still be here," she winked.

"Yeah, I," Erin didn't finish her sentence, knowing he probably would have been if their day hadn't ended so weirdly. "Soo… tell me what happened."

"He just came out with it," Kate blushed, recalling. "It's weird, I wasn't expecting it at all! I didn't even think it was on his mind."

Erin didn't wanna voice that she felt the same. She was happy for Dan and her friend but…they weren't even living together. They seemed to have arguments constantly. _Maybe Dan was jumping into something._

"It's beautiful," she said, commenting on the ring instead. "I think there's a bottle of champagne in the fridge." Erin made her way into the kitchen, followed by Kate.

"But we have work tomorrow!" Kate seemed to plead. Obviously she remembered how much the two of them felt it the next morning, the last time she and Erin drank together.

"…yeah, but you're getting married!" Erin shouted, pulling the bottle free and popping the wooden cork. It flew across the room and they both giggled. "Anyway, one glass isn't going to kill us-"

"True," Kate gave in easily and reached for two flute glasses.

They moved back into the lounge, stuck on a movie. Erin was surprised Kate didn't comment on how much she checked her cell phone. It was drawing close to 9pm and she still hadn't heard anything from Jay. She didn't know the protocol when it came to being anxious about somebody who she'd recently started thinking about a lot.

 _Should she call him and let him answer her questions? Or wait for him to call her?_

"What is with you tonight?" Kate finally realized Erin was in a daze. "You're distracted."

"I'm just tired," Erin played it off, yawning.

"Oh I _bet_ you are," Kate teased and the reply earned her a nudge. "We have so much time to celebrate this. You go to sleep, I'll wash up."

Erin exhaled quietly, glad that Kate had dismissed her with little questioning. "Are you sure?" To be fair, she was actually starting to feel tired.

"Absolutely," Kate ushered her away, picking up their empty glasses. "You're the one that has to go to work in the morning anyway. Get outta here."

"I'm going," Erin stuck out her tongue. The work driven part of her told her it was the right idea: she would be back in her realtor role tomorrow and the thought hadn't even crossed her mind all weekend. Mondays meant new clients and probably a heavy workload.

She curled up beneath the comforter as soon as she got into her bedroom. All she'd really done all day is divide her time between that and the couch. Erin hated to be that needy person, but she couldn't seem to stop checking her phone. It kinda surprised her that Jay hadn't even texted. She set her alarm and flipped over to get some sleep.

" _Stay at home. Keep your cell phone on. This could affect the both of us."_

Erin pulled her blankets over her head in an attempt to shut off. Two minutes later, she threw them off again and found herself staring at the ceiling. After repeating her movements several times, she eventually closed her eyes again.

* * *

The alarm woke her suddenly with its repetitive ringing tone. Erin reached an arm out from the bed to whack it, fully in the mood to launch it across the bedroom. It was a sign that she didn't wanna get out of bed, feeling that she hadn't had sufficient sleep. There was no time for that though, and Erin prayed that coffee would fix her mood. Caffeine would see her through the day.

She flung back the covers with effort and sat up. Thankful she hadn't polished off the champagne, Erin walked the carpet into the bathroom to pee. And shower. It was early, meaning Kate probably wouldn't disturb her today, especially if her roommate had stayed up later to finish off the bottle.

Erin completed her usual bathroom routine and went back into the bedroom, wrapped in a towel. Only then did she realize the flashing on her cell phone. Something different to being her alarm. A text message.

She sat on the edge of her bed to read it. A message from Jay. Only five words.

 _Are you at work today?_

He'd added an emoticon at the end, a face that was smiling.

Erin frowned, not knowing how to respond. She hadn't heard anything and then he'd texted about something unrelated. She gulped: at least she _hoped_ it was unrelated. She replied with a simple _yes_ and a smiley back, waiting a couple of minutes before hitting send.

 _Why did it matter to him if she was at work today? He was the one who'd left her in the lurk all night._

She put the Detective to the back of her mind and continued getting ready for work. Erin retrieved everything she needed to take to the office with her and left the apartment in a haste, not wanting to be late.

The music that blared from the car radio did a good job to distract her from thoughts as she approached her work place. Once she'd parked in her familiar spot, Erin grabbed her purse and jacket that she'd thrown into the back of her car and jumped out, locking her vehicle with the fob behind her.

There was nothing at the office block to tell her this was gonna be anything different to a regular work day. Erin rushed down the empty hallway to reach the comfort of her own work space. Shutting the door behind her, she hung up her coat and sank into the desk chair she would spend hours in. As she started up the monitor, her eyes drifted to the tiny icon telling her the time. It was just after 8:30, meaning she had time to make a coffee before their Monday briefing.

She made her way to the shared kitchen, not paying any attention to her surroundings before she had her caffeine fix. By the time Erin made her way back to the office, it suddenly dawned on her that she'd been the only one in the kitchen. The only one in the corridor. Come to think of it, she hadn't seen _anybody_ else this morning.

The rational part of her brain took over, and she put it to the back of her mind. It wouldn't be long, anyway, before the Monday morning briefing and then she wouldn't be alone. At least she had time to drink her coffee in her own company…

"Erin."

Her eyes shot towards the door because she couldn't be sure if she'd actually heard it or made it up. Upon seeing who it was, one side of her mouth tugged up but she refocussed her attention on the computer screen. Playfully acting as though she hadn't heard him.

"Erin," the action caused him to speak again. "Hey."

"Hey?" From the corners of her eyelids she looked at him standing in the doorway. Jay was dressed in his patrol uniform, something she hadn't seen him wearing before. His Detective badge was hung around his neck and there was a thigh holster where it should be, holding a gun. She gulped, suddenly realizing that he was obviously on duty.

Not that the fact he was working had _anything_ to do with what she wanted to say. Erin put down her coffee mug and, using both hands, pushed herself away from the desk. She wanted to call him out for leaving her in the dark all weekend, not even a text? Erin wanted to slap herself for being so bothered by it and yet thought she deserved to know. "What do you want?"

"I guess I deserve that," Jay stumbled into the room and closed her office door behind him. "Can I?" he motioned towards the vacant seat opposite her, watched for the slight nod of her head and then collapsed into it, exhaling.

Erin stayed quiet as she watched his movement, how he manoeuvred into the chair, an expression on his face that she couldn't read. She nursed the mug of coffee between both her hands, waited for him to continue talking.

"You know, I don't usually work weekends," he confessed, staring down at her work desk and not making eye contact. "That's how you know it's gotta be something huge." Jay shifted position, crossing then uncrossing his legs before continuing. "My weekends are mostly for things that I want to do… seeing friends, seeing my family," then he looked up. "Spending time with _you_ ," a flicker of a grin appeared on his face.

The slight change in his tone made her cheeks flush with color: suddenly his unexpected blankness of her over the weekend didn't mean a lot. She just wanted to know what was going on and, sensing his stalling, Erin put down her mug and leaned forward across her desk. Looking at him.

"Sometimes we get a tip off, and can't talk about it until it's proven to be true," Jay had lowered his tone and kept looking over his shoulder, towards the door of the office. His gaze lingered to the outside hallway before he turned back towards her, a finger pressed to his lips.

"Mitch Johnson has been arrested for drug possession," Jay watched as Erin's jaw dropped to the floor. "Somebody left an anonymous tip and with things like that, we gotta check them out." He spoke in little more than a whisper, giving Erin the impression that he perhaps shouldn't even be telling her yet. "The team were here early this morning and we have to search the place-"

"Have you found anything?" Erin gulped, knowing if it was true then Jay's words from their last evening would be right: this _could_ affect the both of them.

"They're still working on his office," he said. He looked uncomfortable for a minute before standing up. "It does mean we have to search the entire place though."

"Right," Erin realized what he was getting at and stood up too. "Do you need to-"

"I can get somebody else to search in here if you prefer," Jay cut in. "If you don't want me rooting through your stuff."

"It's your job," she shrugged, leaning against the desk. "I have nothing to hide," she paused then, before speaking again. "I'd prefer you to do it."

Jay nodded, his eyes already scouting out the room for places to search. In his heart, he knew Erin would have nothing to do with what Mitch had been accused of but he had to do his job anyway. "I wouldn't be allowed to do this if people in here knew that we've been…you know…" he swallowed, not knowing how to label what they'd been doing. "Does anybody…?"

Erin bit down on her lip. "Nancy and Joe…they're colleagues but they wouldn't…I mean," she shook her head. "I told them we went out once together but I haven't seen them since so they don't know-"

"Then it should be okay," they kept interrupting each other, still unsure of which direction the conversation was going. Jay straightened and walked towards the window, where she kept a potted plant and where the drawers were stacked. From somewhere in his vest, he pulled out a pair of latex gloves and slotted them over his fingers.

Erin acted as though she was glued to her desk, watching Jay as he helped himself to everything in her office. After he'd turned over the plant pot, he moved his attention to the contents of her drawers and pulled them open, stifling through paperwork and personal possessions she kept in there.

"Who sold him out?" she tried, knowing he was probably sworn to secrecy. But worth a shot anyway. She didn't like her boss but she didn't know he was the type of character to bring drugs on their work premises. Even if he _was_ the type of guy to do them in his own home, she'd been witness to that at his parties.

Jay shut the second last of the drawers and looked at her, his brow furrowed. "You know I can't tell you that," it looked as though he was even pained to say it. "But I don't think the allegation has been taken lightly."

"Right," she shrugged, her palms grasping the edge of her desk. A thorough investigation could mean closure of the office, losing clients, temporarily locked out of her work space… "What do you mean by ' _not taken lightly?'_ "

He seemed to look in either direction, as though there were some sort of secret ears in the room. Then he let out the biggest sigh.

"How long have you worked for Mitch?" Jay asked suddenly, turning their conversation in a different direction.

Erin drummed her fingers on the desktop. No way was she about to disclose that she'd worked for him for a while, that they'd even shared one or two drunken moments at her boss's lavish parties. Something she wasn't about to discuss with a guy she wanted to pursue something with.

"Almost five years," she counted, her eyes on him as he continued his search through her stuff. Surprised at the fact that him doing so didn't bother her.

Jay stuck his head out of a drawer just long enough to reply. "…so you'd say you know him pretty well?"

"I guess," she shrugged, thinking back to the conversations she'd shared with her boss. Aside from when they were discussing work, her talks with Mitch had rarely been about anything other than his parties or what his latest extravagant purchase had been.

"There's nothing in here," Jay finally reappeared into view, scratching his head. As though he'd expected there to be something hidden in her office that could tell him more about her boss.

"I could have told you that and saved you the time," Erin said, shrugging. There was a tartness to her voice that she didn't recognize, knowing it would all go away if Jay opened his mouth and said something, something resembling an explanation. Or even gave her one of those looks: where he cocked his head to the side and smiled, his eyes shining along with it. She'd seen the specific look twice before and recalled how it made her feel. But now they were both at work, she had to maintain professionalism.

"Erin," there it was, the lithe way her name slid from his tongue, even in the work place it was tingling her insides. He sighed audibly, the slump in his shoulders evident. Then Jay closed the drawer he'd been inspecting and walked back to her desk, his arms folded across his chest. He opened and closed his mouth several times- like a fish- but with no words coming out. "You know we have to take allegations seriously," he gulped, refusing to look up from the floor. Knowing, if he did so, he'd feel even guiltier about his strange behavior on Saturday.

It was annoying that he'd been stuck in two different frames of mind over whether to disclose the case or not to Erin: she probably had a right to know but he wasn't technically allowed to tell her anything until he was given permission to. And it sucked because they were just opening up to each other and…

"I get it," she said quietly, her gaze flitting up to look at him even though he still looked down at the floor. "But please be honest with me, do you _really_ think there's any truth to this?" Though Erin had her differences with her boss, she still struggled to believe that he'd hidden this alternative lifestyle from the likes of her and the rest of the realtors that worked here. It wasn't something she'd expected at all.

"I don't know," something in Jay's tone changed, and it automatically told her that he was being truthful. "I'll be able to tell you more if we find anything," he looked up then, meeting her stare. He suddenly closed the gap between them, sucking in a breath. Jay remained uneasy though, twisting his stance to see if there was anybody from his team loitering in the hallway. There wasn't. It looked as though he wanted to just pull her close…

A large bang from outside Erin's office made them both jump. Jay recoiled his position, turning his attention to her as they both had the same realization.

"Is that…" Erin trailed off, not finishing her sentence, rather opening and closing her mouth repeatedly with no words coming out.

"It's Mitch," Jay finished the sentence for her, his eyes widening at the loud commotion outside. Two members of his unit, clad in uniform like himself, wrestling a man between them. A man both of them knew was Erin's boss.

"What the-" Erin hurried to the glass panes of her office, unable to tear her gaze away from her manager. Mitch was in a state like she'd never seen him before. His usual flawless appearance was tarnished by the police presence and his expensive dress suit wasn't so glamorous: the tail of his shirt hovered over his pants and those pants trailed along the carpet. He was shouting profanities but Erin couldn't make out exactly what he was trying to say. She half wanted to call out to him: sure he was _definitely_ an asshole at times but she had thought the guy was harmless.

"They must have found something," Jay interrupted her internal thinking, vocalizing what Erin had already presumed to be true.

 _Right_ she thought, assuming whatever or whomever had ratted out Mitch had some truth to their allegation. She'd seen a fair share of TV (because that was the only situation she'd seen this happen…never in real life) where the character had been whisked away from a questioning.

Erin folded her arms in front of her and watched as her boss disappeared from sight, still putting up a fight. She shook her head, knowing that wouldn't get him very far. Mitch was stubborn and, even with a cop either side of him, he was making such a personality trait known.

"Shit," she finally muttered, using one hand to massage the right side of her temple. "What do I do now?"

"I'll find out," Jay offered, his tone somewhat calming. Because he was obviously accustomed to this sort of situation. "Don't worry."

 _Yeah okay,_ she wanted to say. _Because your career hasn't just been thrown under a bus. Your boss hasn't just caused your company a load of shit. You never just potentially lost your job._

"Hey," Jay seemed to sense how she was feeling. As he took a last look outside of her office-it seemed quieter now that his co-workers had escorted Mitch away from the building- he took a step towards Erin and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Within seconds she had given up the stubborn front, burying her face into his bulletproof vest. No matter how uncomfortable it was.

"You'll get an indent in your face from these pockets," he joked, trying to lift up her spirits.

Her small muffled laugh vibrated against his torso before her face re-emerged, several of her curls clinging to her perspiring brow. "I don't care," she pouted.

"You should," Jay continued, looking down into her eyes. "We can't have you serving clients with all these weird lines printed on that pretty face." His arm slinked from around her shoulder to stroke the temporary new addition on her cheek.

Erin shuddered. "You think I should stay here and work? After what's just happened?"

"That's what you _have_ to do," Jay said, quite formally. "The worst thing would be if all the clients figured out what was happening." He backed away, shoving his hands into pockets of the vest and rocking back on his heels. "You're good at this and I should know," he smirked a little, winking. "You should lead the team into what to do today."

"I…" Erin gulped, knowing he was evidently right. She _was_ good at her job- she just never thought a day would come when she would have to step up in such a way. Not yet- and not quite so suddenly- anyway. She retreated back to her desk chair and collapsed into it but swivelled to face him. "You know," she continued. "..when you said this could affect the both of us…I thought you meant…"

"You thought I meant what?" he asked, concerned and inquisitive.

 _Teddy. My mom. Something to do with a past that needed to stay where it belonged- in the past._ Erin was quiet for a few moments. "Never mind."

Jay looked as though he was gonna push her for an answer but didn't. "Okay," he nodded, running a palm across his stubble. The hairs of which were growing longer than usual, the beginnings of a beard. He glanced towards the hallway. "I guess I should be getting back to work."

"I suppose so," Erin agreed, reluctantly. "You've caused enough damage in my office for one day," she said, in reference to his actions before, his ransacking through her office furniture.

"I…" Jay was about to protest before he saw the look on her face. At least she didn't seem to be pissed about that.

"I'm kidding, it's routine and I get that," Erin said, shrugging. "So, when will I see-"

"Erin," he said suddenly. "Kiss me."

She spluttered at his unexpected boldness. "What?"

"I'm not gonna leave this office until you kiss me goodbye," he laughed.

Erin narrowed her eyes. "So if I don't kiss you then you'll stay in my office all day?"

Jay pouted. "Yeah, I didn't really think this through," he realized, not taking his eyes from her.

"No, you didn't," Erin agreed, laughing to herself. She was reluctant for him to leave too, but they both had work to do. Slowly, she rose from her chair and walked over to where he stood. Did a quick survey of his body beneath its armour. He sure did look good in uniform. "You want me to kiss you goodbye? In my office? Where my colleagues and your colleagues could be out anywhere in the hallway?"

"I don't see anybody," Jay smiled, not even lifting his eyes to look.

"You didn't even check."

"Don't need to," Jay cocked his head to the side. He extended a hand towards her, pushing back a lose curl. "I need to know that whatever this turns into," he gestured around him. "That it won't affect what is happening between us. I need you to know that I didn't wanna leave you in the dark this weekend but I couldn't let anything happen to you. Maybe I overreacted but-"

Erin was on her tiptoes, interrupting his speech by locking their lips. "It isn't, it won't," she said when they parted. The kiss reminded her of their connection at the weekend, how he returned it softly at first but then she felt force. She brushed her fingers through his hair and fought to get them back, apparently he used some sort of product to keep it in place whilst he was working.

"Good," Jay trapped her jaw between his fingers and kissed her again, relatively reassured by her answer. Eventually he pulled back, remembering where they were. "I'll keep you updated," it sounded like a promise.

"Alright," Erin smiled, her insides feeling fuzzy. Something she would have to quickly forget about if she was about to even attempt to be productive today. "Now get out of my office," she joked.

"Yes ma'am," Jay offered a mocking salute before turning it into a wave. "I'll see you."

Erin nodded, watching from the doorway as the Detective rounded a corner she couldn't see beyond. Only a couple of seconds had he been gone from her view did Nancy appear, waving hands in front of Erin's face and disrupt her daze.

"Don't you dare go thinking I didn't see _that_ ," her friend grinned.

"See what?" Erin pleaded innocence but the rush of color flooding her cheeks gave her away.

"You know perfectly well what I saw," Nancy shrieked, nudging her workmate's arm. "I can't blame you, I mean look at him! So are you two a thing now? What was he doing here?"

Erin gulped. "You don't know?"

"Uhh, nope." Nancy looked around her. "I tried to call ahead to tell Mitch I was gonna be late this morning. My car gave out on the highway. Then I get here and it's like a fucking ghost town."

 _She was bound to find out one way or another_ Erin thought. "Mitch has been arrested."

"Oh my God! Why? What for?!"

"I don't know a lot yet," she said truthfully. "But something to do with drugs."

"What? Shit," Nancy exhaled a long breath whilst she processed what Erin told her. "So what's going to happen?"

"I don't know that either," Erin shrugged, retreating back into the comfort of her own office and watching as her friend followed. "I think we gotta keep working as usual for now," she said. "Do you have clients to work with today?"

"Yes," Nancy said after a few moments. Then she was quiet again, not knowing what to say. Like Erin's initial reaction, Nancy's jaw dropped and closed a few times as she thought of the right thing to say.

"I know," Erin agreed, though her friend hadn't said anything further. She fully understood her reaction though, what she'd just been told had rendered her speechless. Nancy probably hadn't suspected such news either. "We have to pretend things are cool for now," Erin worked to reassure herself as well as her friend. "Act like nothing has changed and continue to sell properties."

"You're right," Nancy nodded. "Why is it that you're always right?"

"Actually I can't take the credit this time. This was Jay's idea," Erin replied. She knew for a fact if Jay hadn't said something so confidently then she would have crumbled at the idea of still having to work whilst their boss was incapable.

"Oh," Nancy leered, the change of subject putting the life back into her. "Don't think you're getting away with not telling me about him. I'll corner you sometime," she giggled, still wanting to gossip before again turning serious. "Okay, I got it. We still got to work. Right." She worked to encourage herself then turned on her heel in the direction of her own office. Erin watched for a moment before doing the same, starting up her email and trying her damn hardest to concentrate on her workload.

* * *

"Is that you Erin?"

She slammed the apartment door closed and leaned against it for a minute. Half of her had hoped Kate would be out so she could retreat right to her bedroom and deal with the stress of her day. The advice from Jay to continue the work day as normal had worked at first but as the news spread around the building, some realtors hadn't taken it as well as herself. Not only had the fact she'd stepped up meant she had dealt with angry and upset clients but also members of Mitch's team who hadn't taken the news of his arrest lightly. Threatening to quit, to have nothing to do with the company any longer and Erin had fought to keep them quiet for now.

All of which combined together meant she'd had a crappy day and wanted nothing more than to relax in a hot bath or something. But Kate had already called for her when she had but one foot over the threshold of the apartment. Erin rolled her eyes and dropped her purse. "Coming," she muttered unenthusiastically.

She felt bad when she caught sight of Kate though, lounging surrounded by snacks and Netflix on pause. _This isn't Kate's fault_ Erin quickly told herself before perching on the edge of the couch.

"Ooh, rough day?" Kate spun to face her when she heard Erin enter the room. Okay so perhaps the mood of the day was evident on her face. "Are you okay?"

Erin nodded, her eyes closing as she ran a hand through her hair. "I'm fine," she said. "I hope it's just a headache. I think I might go for a soak," right now, she couldn't think of anything she wanted more.

"You look exhausted," Kate continued. "Want me to tell that boss of yours to calm it with the workload? I don't think it's good for you, babe," the look on her roommate's face was of genuine concern and Erin wanted to kick herself for wishing Kate wasn't home. She obviously cared about her.

"No," Erin tried to play it off with laughter. "Leave him to me," it was her attempt to finish the conversation about her boss because she certainly didn't want him in her thoughts any longer today. "I might see you after a bath, if I don't head straight to bed."

"Okay," Kate seemed to understand, looking at her roommate for a minute before turning her attention back to the TV. "Feel better!"

Erin left her roommate to whatever she was doing and walked the hallway to her bedroom. She threw her purse onto the bed and started undressing, leaving items behind her as she headed to run herself a bath. She could kill for a glass of wine to accompany it, but it was only Monday and she couldn't just drink through the entire week. No matter how much she currently wanted to do that.

She draped a towel onto the railing and stepped into the water, testing the temperature at first with her toes. It was hot, the way she needed it to be to make her relax. Being in such a quiet and serene atmosphere almost made her feel as though she could unwind. Her eyes slid closed and Erin slumped until everything bar her face was submerged in water. It would be so damn easy to just drop off…

"Erin," then came a knock on her bedroom door. It was away from her surroundings but not far enough she couldn't hear it. Kate's familiar knock that she used when she didn't just want to burst into Erin's room.

Her eyes opened with a start. When she was _just_ starting to relax. "What is it?" she said through gritted teeth.

"There's somebody ringing the apartment buzzer."

Erin rolled her eyes. So what? And? "Well can't you answer it?"

"I'm about to," Kate continued. "But it's for you."

She sat up then, the upper half of her body breaking out in goose pimples with the change of temperature. "Yeah? Who is it?"

"It's your boyfriend."

Erin turned her head towards the door. Jay? What was he doing here? Surely he couldn't be about to burden her with _more_ bad news, she'd had enough of that today. She pulled the plug and watched the water as it started to circle down her drainpipe and then wrapped the towel around her. Her bathrobe was waiting for her by the vanity.

As she quickly towel dried her hair, there was another knock on her bedroom door.

"Kate! Tell him I'll be five minutes!"

"It's me," his voice came from the other side of the door. "Can I come in?"

"Oh!" Erin muttered several cuss words under her breath before she hovered by the door. Suddenly she felt flustered: was it acceptable to open the door whilst she was still in her bath robe? It wasn't like he hadn't seen her semi-naked before. She gulped, pushing her hair off her face.

She pulled back the door in a swift movement and saw Jay standing there, leaning against her doorframe. He'd changed out of his patrol uniform into jeans and a sweatshirt, one that he'd rolled the sleeves of to his elbows. He didn't wait to be invited in, instead rushing towards her and wrapping both arms around her waist.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she was now. "What are you doing here, Jay?"

"I didn't come to talk about what happened today, if that's what you're thinking," he studied the elements of her face, starting with her hair line and tracing her features with his pupils until he'd covered it all and stared into her eyes again. "I guess while I'm here though I can tell you," he gulped. "Mitch is being charged. He…how long did you say you'd worked for him?"

Erin broke free from his grip and collapsed onto the bedspread. "Nearly five years," she confessed again. "What does that have to do with anything? What is he being charged with?"

"I told you I didn't come here to talk about your boss," Jay had lowered his tone and followed her towards the bed. He flopped onto the comforter beside her, as though he belonged there too. "I'm sorry for the position I put you into this weekend," he said, scratching his head. "I needed to know that you still wanna do this…us," he gestured between them both.

"I like you, nothing's changed on my behalf," her choice of words made her cringe. _Like?_ She felt about thirteen, but she definitely couldn't drop the 'l' bomb. Erin touched a hand to his chest, gripping the material of his shirt. "But where is this coming from? I thought your speech in my office meant things were okay between us?"

"They are Erin," he said quietly. His tone made it evident that he hadn't come to her apartment to _talk_.

For a minute, she let herself get distracted, giggling as Jay played with the fastening of her bathrobe and they collapsed with each other onto the comforter. It was as though the events of the day hadn't even happened, they were keeping to their word of not letting work and personal worlds collide.

She pulled the Detective over where she lay, looking into the depths of his eyes as he caressed her skin.

"If Mitch gets time, that means you'll be running the company, right?" Jay sat up and reached across his torso to pull himself free from his sweatshirt. Something that told Erin he wasn't planning on going anywhere anytime soon. A notion that she could be getting used to.

"You said you didn't come here to talk about work," Erin wriggled free until she was standing and tiptoes to the window, drawing her blinds. Then her eyes double checked her door was closed, locked even.

"Right," he reached to grab her and Erin squealed as he brought her back to the bed. "No work. All play."

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